Greenfield hires firms to help post-tornado

The City of Greenfield now has an engineering firm on board to help them with post-tornado projects and have the ball rolling on a comprehensive plan and zoning map update.

The council took action on both items at a Tuesday, Aug. 27 city council meeting. They went with JEO Consulting Group for their engineer and MSA Professional Services, Inc. for the comprehensive plan and zoning map update. Both firms are located in Ankeny.

The engineering firm contract was not for a specific amount. The council only declared who they will work with.

Adair and Guthrie County Emergency Management Coordinator Jeremy Cooper advised the council earlier on during the tornado recovery process that having an engineering firm hired would be helpful later on as the city rebuilds the fire station and does other projects relating to rebuilding facilities or infrastructure-related items. The council heard proposals from different firms in a recent special meeting.

The comprehensive plan and zoning map contract was in the amount of $35,000. Right after the tornado, the council was reminded that several lots in town are not zoned accurately, either for the way they’re currently utilized or for the way they’re intended. This brought up the need for the town’s zoning to be drastically improved.

A comprehensive plan is oftentimes described as a roadmap for directing growth and change over time in a municipality, and Greenfield’s has not been updated since the 1990s. A committee appointed by the council reviewed proposals from interested firms.

The council received an update on the demolition of the fire station at the corner of SE 5th and East Iowa Street, which was performed by Lamb Tiling last week. FEMA was on site during the demolition and will review hundreds of photos taken to do a cost analysis that will determine how much reimbursement the city receives for the structure.

The fire department plans to move into an all-new facility, where its previous station was, sometime in the future.

The downtown revitalization project, which draws from grant money to rehabilitate blighted facades on the west side of the square, is through the pre-construction meeting process. Doors and windows have been measured, but other than that, work has not begun yet.

A temporary office space will be hauled in and placed just north of the old library. A CDBG program sign will be placed somewhere in the project area near the Old Fire Station.

The council also hired Schwartz Construction to build a metal building.