[1:03] Good morning. Welcome to the Monday
August 31st, 2026 Muscatine County Board
[1:08] of Supervisors meeting. We'll call the
meeting to order. First item is to
[1:12] review the agenda.
>> Move to approve as presented.
[1:14] » Second.
>> Got a motion and second. All in favor?
[1:17] » Aye.
>> Opposed. Motion carries.
[1:20] » [clears throat]
>> Item three, discussion possible action
[1:22] to accept claims dated August 31st, 2026
in the amount of $731,761.05.
[1:31] » So moved.
>> Second.
[1:33] » Got a motion and second. All in favor?
>> Aye.
[1:36] » Opposed. Motion carries. Item four with
County Engineer Brian Herauky. Item
[1:42] eight, discussion possible action to
approve various utility permits.
[1:46] » Good morning.
Uh we have two utility permits today.
[1:50] » [clears throat]
>> Excuse me.
[1:51] Uh first is
Eastern Iowa Light and Power of Wilton,
[1:56] Iowa. Uh they're to replace a pole and
anchor at 2978 130th Street.
[2:03] Very straightforward.
Uh the second is
[2:07] also from Eastern Iowa Light and Power
of Wilton, Iowa. They're requesting
[2:12] requesting to replace existing overhead
electric on 235th Street from
[2:17] Independence Ave
west to 1661 235th Street.
[2:24] Also pretty straightforward.
>> I would move the approval.
[2:29] » [clears throat]
>> You have a motion and second. All in
[2:31] favor?
>> Aye.
[2:33] » Opposed? Motion carried. You got
anything else, Brian?
[2:35] » Yes, just a quick project update. Down
on Stewart Road,
[2:39] they're wrapping up some erosion stone.
They're also doing
[2:43] uh
you know, wrapping up punch list items
[2:46] kind of here, there, everywhere
throughout the project.
[2:53] Uh hopefully by the end of this week the
the painters are scheduled to show up
[2:57] and stripe the remaining remaining road
that needs striped yet. So,
[3:02] hopefully come the end of this week we
should be sitting in a good spot.
[3:05] Uh down on Ogilvie
Ogilvie [clears throat] Ave, which is
[3:09] south of
Wiggins going into Louisa County.
[3:14] Just to let you know, on Wednesday
that's September.
[3:19] Um
Wednesday the 2nd.
[3:21] They currently plan to be in to to apply
a a friction seal to that pavement to
[3:27] as part of a maintenance project. Um it
should just be a one-day event. So.
[3:32] Um
[3:35] Uh we last week uh we awarded the G28
paving job.
[3:41] Contractor turned around, got all their
contract documents to us. All looked
[3:45] well, so we approved that.
Um we have not had a precon with them
[3:49] yet. Uh but we will. Um, but uh,
initial talks, they did talk like they
[3:55] want to come in yet this year and get
started on it. So,
[3:59] which really wouldn't be that that bad
of a deal for us.
[4:02] So, um, hopefully more news to come on
that when they [clears throat] actually
[4:05] plan to start and what their game plan
is. So,
[4:11] that's all I had.
>> Thank you.
[4:16] Item five, discussion and possible
action to approve the minutes of the
[4:19] August 24th, 2026 regular meeting.
>> I would move to approve.
[4:23] » Second.
>> Got a motion and second. All in favor?
[4:26] » Aye.
>> Aye.
[4:27] » Opposed? Motion carries.
Correspondence, uh, Scott.
[4:32] » I had a call from a resident and he was
uh,
[4:37] we had quite a conversation about data
centers and what have you and and how he
[4:40] was in favor
of them.
[4:43] And we had, like I said, I bet we talked
15 minutes about it. And, uh,
[4:49] so, yeah, he he has a a positive outlook
on them and, uh,
[4:55] would like to see some come in the
county. I'm just reporting it. That's
[4:59] all That's all I had.
>> Jeff?
[5:02] » I had nothing to note.
>> I didn't have anything for
[5:04] correspondence.
>> I received a, uh, text from a resident
[5:08] about the flashing lights on F-70 and
38. Still didn't think they were bright
[5:12] enough and I said, "Well,
I think this is the third upgrade on
[5:16] those signs." [snorts]
>> they they
[5:18] » At least two.
>> It's the second. Um,
[5:21] they
>> It's the second. They replaced the
[5:23] lights. Um, they had some issues with
the initial ones that got installed. Um,
[5:28] personally, I think they're pretty darn
bright. You can see them from like a
[5:30] mile away. So,
I think that's bright enough in my book,
[5:33] but
>> I
[5:34] I wish I'd have thought to bring that up
a few minutes ago because, uh, I noticed
[5:39] [clears throat] it right away.
And, uh, um,
[5:43] if
>> [clears throat]
[5:44] » I I could I could see those
from
[5:48] » Yeah.
>> a long distance. I mean, quarter mile.
[5:51] » Yeah.
>> You can see them.
[5:53] » [laughter]
>> And when the sun was out, and
[5:56] I'm not
I'm not being negative towards this
[5:58] gentleman, but
they are a huge improvement.
[6:02] » Yeah.
>> Yeah, you know, I thought so, too.
[6:04] » That was at F70, correct? The one at
There's one up at Moscow and 6 that they
[6:08] still need to tweak with.
>> The southbound one looks good.
[6:10] » The southbound one looks good. So, but
and I don't know the status of that. I
[6:15] was up there early last week, and they
still needed to mess with it. They knew
[6:19] they needed to mess with it.
And uh
[6:22] but
yeah, all the rest of them look good.
[6:26] » that's shining in someone's yard?
>> There's always There's always that.
[6:30] » Yeah, right?
>> Yep.
[6:33] » There There is actually some some
not with these flashing lights, but you
[6:38] know, when it comes to signs,
the reflectivity of signs, a person
[6:42] really has to be careful to not go too
bright on the reflectivity, or or it
[6:47] acts as a mirror, and you know, it does
stick out, but it can also blind
[6:51] someone.
>> Same dude, same dude.
[6:53] » It is a balancing act.
[6:57] » Uh
item seven, committee reports.
[7:00] » Yeah. Uh
Wednesday the 26th, I had Bi-State.
[7:06] What Wednesday the 26th, I also had
Muscon meeting.
[7:10] Thursday the 27th, We Lead.
And Thursday the 27th,
[7:15] » Fair Board.
>> I feel like I didn't have anything.
[7:17] » Everything in two days, yeah.
>> I had Bi-State on the 26th.
[7:22] » I had nothing.
>> I had nothing.
[7:25] » On the item eight with the
administration office, discussion and
[7:28] possible action to approve 2027
Muscatine County holiday schedule.
[7:32] » Have we normally done the eight
designated and three floating?
[7:35] » Um it it kind of just depends on where
the holidays fall. Most of them are
[7:39] falling on a Monday or a Friday, so
we we do anywhere from 8 to 10 depending
[7:45] on where they fall.
>> I got no problem with it, yeah.
[7:48] Yeah, I don't care.
Move to approve?
[7:50] » I have a question. Has the county ever
considered Martin Luther King Day?
[7:56] » I think we've talked about it, but I
don't
[7:58] know what the discussion has been.
>> States close, federal offices are closed
[8:02] a lot of times, so it's it's a quiet day
in my office because
[8:06] of
>> Everything else is shut down around the
[8:10] state.
>> Yeah. And I'm sorry I did not come with
[8:12] that date um on the schedule, I mean on
my
[8:16] radar to
[8:18] mention when it when it is.
[8:22] » I think we're good.
January like Is it February?
[8:28] » It's January 18th.
>> That's President's Day you're thinking
[8:30] of. Yeah, yeah. It's like yeah, it's the
third week of January now.
[8:33] » Is your thought process to add another
day or you or just exchange?
[8:37] » Exchange it for a floating day.
Just take it out of the two floating.
[8:40] » It would be a Monday, so that is also a
board meeting day.
[8:45] Let me look at ahead
if it was a holiday.
[8:52] » I don't feel strongly about it one way
or the other.
[8:55] Yeah, it doesn't doesn't really matter
to me.
[8:57] » I'm curious like Corey
>> Yeah, there's I'm sorry. There's no
[9:01] courts, so it's a very quiet day for us
and I think the jail as well.
[9:05] » Mhm.
No crime?
[9:08] » [laughter]
>> Wow.
[9:10] They take a holiday. Dang.
Any phone calls like
[9:15] » So you want it?
>> I don't know.
[9:16] » You got two floating.
>> You have three.
[9:18] » I think people would rather have a
floating day, wouldn't they?
[9:20] » I would agree. [clears throat]
>> I would rather have a floating day
[9:23] if I were an employee.
>> Right, that way you're able to maybe do
[9:27] some personal things or what have you
and instead of being
[9:31] um I I think that I think that
>> [cough]
[9:34] » I guess I'd rather move to you it as is.
>> I would second.
[9:39] » Not a bad idea, just
>> Okay, we got a motion and a second. All
[9:43] in favor?
>> Aye.
[9:44] » Aye.
>> Oppose? Motion carries.
[9:49] Anything else, Kayla?
>> Nothing else.
[9:52] » Item nine, receive information from
county employees.
[9:57] » Just briefly since the data center
everything came out.
[10:00] » Okay.
[10:03] » We do have a board of adjustment case
set for Friday, September 11th, um
[10:07] dealing with
one existing crypto mining facility that
[10:11] we've had out in the county that is
proposing some changes
[10:15] and additions,
um
[10:18] due to what I'm what I believe is kind
of some speculation misinformation in
[10:22] the community, I was made aware of a lot
of social media discussions that I think
[10:26] is going to result in
um larger attendance and so even though
[10:30] we had just published notice and sent
out publication for the location,
[10:35] um we're changing the location. The time
and date will remain the same. We're
[10:39] we've republished and re- and sending
out surrounding property owners and I'm
[10:43] I commented on the post that we're
changing location to Discovery Center,
[10:46] so we can accommodate accommodate
anybody from the public that
[10:49] » Are we within the legal time frames to
do that?
[10:51] » Yes. Yeah, we'll still be fine. And it's
just a change of location. The hearing
[10:55] is still being held um same time and
date because the developer is flying in
[11:00] and um
so that'll be at 10:00 a.m. Friday,
[11:03] September 11th.
>> is it? Is it the one out by Menards?
[11:06] » Yeah, correct.
>> Yeah.
[11:07] » Yeah. Yeah, which is
>> only the current only one operating
[11:10] within county jurisdiction.
>> correct. Yeah, and it's a proposal to
[11:13] add like a cooling system, some backup
generator,
[11:18] um but it because we no longer allow
um
[11:21] data centers or crypto mining facilities
except in the industrial zone districts,
[11:26] it's going in front of the board of
adjustment as a slight expansion or
[11:29] modification to a legal non-conforming
use.
[11:32] Um so it still allows, you know,
adjoining property owners um and any
[11:37] interested party to weigh in because as
you know, special use permits are a
[11:40] case-by-case basis.
>> And that one we snuck in before we got
[11:43] everything updated, right?
>> Uh well, I mean, I don't want to use the
[11:45] term like
>> That's that's the term you're right.
[11:48] » snuck in.
>> It was approved before we got everything
[11:50] » It was approved and you know, and just
as these things were becoming hot topics
[11:54] and rapidly changing in their scope and
impact. And so then we as you're aware,
[11:58] we modified our or amended our zoning
ordinance and placed them in the as per
[12:02] special permitted uses in the heavy
industrial district, but this one it
[12:05] does continue to operate legally as a
non-conforming use. So
[12:10] » So under under our current ordinance and
the request they're making for their
[12:14] upgrades, does it fall within side of
our
[12:17] It doesn't fall within side of our
ordinance. Does
[12:20] » Well, the Board of Adjustment would have
the authority to um grant some
[12:24] modifications or slight expansion to
an existing non-conforming use.
[12:30] They're not expanding uh the footprint.
They're not buying any more ground from
[12:33] a neighbor. They are still Any
modifications are still occurring on the
[12:36] same 3-acre site. And I don't want to
get too much into the weeds, you know,
[12:40] outside of the the public hearing, but
it's a proposed The facility remains
[12:44] essentially the same. They're just
swapping out some equipment, adding
[12:47] battery storage and some backup,
changing the cooling system, but it it
[12:51] is an operation legally.
And the Board of Adjustment has the
[12:55] authority to to grant these
modifications or not. If they were to
[12:59] buy any more ground or an adjoining
parcel, it would be a non-starter or
[13:03] would have to propose a rezoning because
we no longer allow them. But that's not
[13:07] the case here, so
10:00 a.m. at the at the Environmental
[13:10] Learning Center is the location. And
like I said, notifications have have
[13:14] gone out.
September 11th, Friday.
[13:18] So just wanted to make that as publicly
broad or
[13:22] available as possible. So anybody that
wants to attend doesn't show up down
[13:25] here.
So we're trying to get that word out.
[13:29] » How about a quick update on
uh engineering zoning building? I drove
[13:34] by, looked like footings are in, steel's
up.
[13:38] » The uh after 40 days and 40 nights of
straight rain, um the the ark has come
[13:44] to rest and we've been able to uh they
finished the I mean, I think there's
[13:48] still a little bit of the foundation
that has to be done at the very end
[13:50] after erection, but they got all the
found rest of the foundation backfilled
[13:54] and yes, they've been making a lot of
progress erecting steel. It goes pretty
[13:58] fast on those engineered pre-engineered
buildings once they get the right
[14:02] weather. So, a lot of steel going up in
the air. And uh yeah, and then they'll I
[14:06] think they were talking maybe in the
next week starting on some skin
[14:10] on it. Um so, yep, it actually looks
like that there might be a building
[14:15] coming at that location now. So.
>> Yeah.
[14:19] Um
and I drove down by Deep Lakes down by
[14:23] the maintenance facility. Looks like
that's coming along.
[14:28] Any
no hiccups? Everything going along
[14:32] pretty smoothly, looks like.
>> Yeah. Well, they got the rough-in
[14:35] [clears throat] plumbing and electrical
and HVAC in the office and uh utility
[14:39] room bathroom area done. Um
uh
[14:42] they've got the step-down transformer
installed.
[14:45] Um electrician last week was working on
the replacement of the high voltage
[14:49] panel in the larger white building where
the electric service comes in. Um
[14:53] they've got the fiber optics stuff or
the the Cat 6 cables uh roughed in to
[14:57] the locations in what will be the office
space. Um so, yeah, they're making good
[15:02] progress on that, too. So.
>> Good.
[15:05] » Yep.
Here it goes.
[15:08] » I think that's all I have.
>> Any other county employees?
[15:13] Seeing none, we move on to receive
comments from the public.
[15:17] » So, there isn't body any nobody here, so
we are adjourned.
[15:23] » We are adjourned.