County tables letter of support for airport annexation a third time

May 8—OSKALOOSA — Supervisors voted for the third time to table signing a letter of support for the city's annexation of 379 acres of airport land west of Oskaloosa at their special session Monday morning.

The Mahaska County Board of Supervisors convened a special session to discuss signing a letter of support for the city's plan to annex 379 acres of land near Leighton, co-owned by the cities of Pella and Oskaloosa through the South Central Regional Airport Agency, for the purpose of constructing a new airport. The board's signatures have been requested by the Iowa Department of Transportation.

"I understand the concerns here. I'm just not sure if we have a big final say — I don't believe we do — in this matter," said board chair Mark Groenendyk.

County attorney Andrew Ritland advised the board once again that, while they do not have the ability to unilaterally put a stop to the annexation, they do have the right to file an objection that would be taken into account by the City Development Board, which will have the final say on the matter, even if the city votes to move ahead with the annexation.

"The [Mahaska County Board of Supervisors] can't, by itself, stop or push the project through, but whatever the board decides, that would be part of the file when it goes to the development board for consideration," Ritland said.

Among main concerns over annexation is the fate of 220th Street, which is a farm-to-market route between Highways 163 and 63. The board heard multiple public comments concerned about the construction of the airport, use of eminent domain and accessibility to 220th Street over the course of the meeting.

"An issue that's this big needs to go to a vote," said Jack Rempe, a Mahaska County resident. "The next biggest thing would be 220th Street. On that side, there's really no alternate route. It's a major farm to market road, it shouldn't be shut. There's no way to get around."

Rempe urged the board to "stick to their guns" and continue fighting against the construction of an airport on the land in question, even if that means finding a new site for the project elsewhere.

"This [airport] site needs to be abandoned, and they need to look for a site that would work for both cities," Rempe said. "The county's really stuck up for the residents here; done a lot of work, spent a lot of money, got done what they needed to get done. But I don't think this is a time to walk away from it. I think the county should stick to their guns on this and not recommend the annexation."

The board still seemed leery of refusing to sign the letter, worried that not supporting the DOT's airport project would sour the county's relationship with the DOT while several infrastructure projects remain on the books, including the Southeast Connector project and the bypass project.

"The reason we fought SCRAA is they did illegal activity. Their 28E was illegal," said board member Steve Wanders. "This is not illegal activity. This may be activity you don't like, but it's not illegal."

Community member Nick Ryan pointed out the city only has the ability to annex the land in question because of their participation in the SCRAA, a 28E agreement between the cities of Oskaloosa, Pella and Mahaska County that the Iowa Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional in June 2022.

"The only reason [this activity] is not illegal is because they were able to purchase that airport land subject to an illegal contract," Ryan said. "If it weren't for them doing that, we wouldn't be sitting here having this conversation."

The board ultimately voted to table the letter for another week to allow time for them to consult with the Iowa DOT about concerns over whether the annexation will lead to a closure of 220th Street. The letter will once again be on the board's agenda for their regular meeting at 9 a.m. Monday, May 15.

The decision comes after the Oskaloosa City Council's Thursday night vote to remove Article VI from the city's charter. Article VI, or "Initiative and Referendum," guaranteed Osky's registered voters the right to submit ordinances to the council for consideration, require the reconsideration of passed ordinances, and to submit ordinances to voters in a city election.

The topic came to a head after Oskaloosa resident Alicia Helm attempted to exercise the right under the city's charter by submitting a proposed ordinance to bar the city from constructing a new airport without first submitting the issue to a vote in a city election. Oskaloosa Mayor David Krutzfeldt says that Helm's proposal had the city questioning whether initiative and referendum is "even legal."

The city convened a special session on Thursday, May 4, to amend the city charter to "comply with Iowa law and make conforming changes." These amendments included removing Article VI from the charter, "Initiative and Referendum," as well as modifying section 7.2, which outlines the process for making changes to the charter.

City councilman Charlie Comfort cited legal opinions from a former state attorney general which claimed that initiative and referendum is contrary to Iowa law. Those opinions led to a 1995 court case, City of Clinton v. Sheridan, which debated whether the right to initiative and referendum is permitted under Iowa law.

In City of Clinton v. Sheridan, the attorney general's published opinions stated initiative and referendum could not be practiced by local governments since it was not explicitly permitted under Iowa law. The case began after a county auditor refused to place a referendum on the ballot.

After hearing the subsequent court case, the Iowa Supreme Court rejected the attorney general's opinion, saying "To require specific statutory authority to permit an initiative or referendum vote is contrary to the intent of the [state's constitutional home rule] amendment ... Cities no longer have only those powers granted by the legislature."

The Oskaloosa City Council is scheduled to hold their next meeting at 6 p.m. Monday, May 15.

Channing Rucks can be reached at crucks@oskyherald.com.