IOWA CITY

Public comment on voting precincts proposed for Johnson County, including those covering Lone Tree, Hills and rural areas in the southern portion of the county, will be heard at the Board of Supervisors formal meeting Sept. 8.

Among the precincts up for board approval are:

Fremont-Lincoln: Fremont and Lincoln Townships, including the City of Lone Tree.

Liberty-Pleasant Valley: Pleasant Valley Township, Liberty Township and the City of Hills.

Sharon: Sharon Township in southwest Johnson County.

The board will vote Sept. 15 on an ordinance covering the county’s precincts. The general election for Johnson County is Nov. 8. A number of state and U.S. spots will be on the ballot. Local elections will include two spots on the Board of Supervisors. Four are going for those two spots, including Lone Tree Democrat Jon Green, a current supervisor, and Lone Tree Republican Jammie Bradshaw.

The public hearing is part of a formal board session beginning at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 8.

Broadband study

At its Aug. 24 work session, the board heard an update from the ARPA Leadership Team that included a report on a broadband study.

One of the county’s projects funded by American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money is a broadband study focusing on areas such as southern Johnson County. The county is urging residents and business owners to check their broadband availability on a new map released by the state. Residents can challenge the map, particularly if their internet speed is slow or unreliable.

The final map will help determine federal and state funding for broadband projects.

To access the map, go to: iowa.maps.arcgis.com, and find the broadband section.

Guidelink update

During an update on the Guideline Center, Supervisor Rod Sullivan suggested again that outside counties should be billed by Johnson County when the center treats residents of other counties.

“They may not pay, but it seems to me it would be worth at least sending a bill,” Sullivan said. “There’s no doubt to me, we’re not going to get this all back. We’re not even gonna get much of it back. I do think there are, we have other counties like Linn that I think would probably pay.

“There’s no reason to not do that.”

The Guidelink Center treats patients with sobering and substance abuse problems, as well as those with mental health issues. Since opening in February 2021, the center has treated more than 2,000, including more than 200 in July at a cost of more than $137,000 to the county.

Guidelink, which is located in Iowa City, is open 24 hours a day. For more details, go to: guidelinkcenter.org, or call (319) 688-8000.

Board action

At its Aug. 25 formal session, the board voted to designate Snyder & Associates, a civil engineering firm with an office in Iowa City, as an on-site inspector for a proposed carbon-capture pipeline that may go through the northeast portion of Johnson County. The pipeline, which would begin its route at the ADM Corn Processing plant in Cedar Rapids, has been proposed by Wolf Carbon Solutions.

The board approved a revision to a subrecipient agreement with Iowa City, resulting in all eligible applicants in the Direct Assistance program to receive one-time payments of $1,400. The program is part of the county’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) projects plan. The county contributed $2 million in ARPA funds for the Direct Assistance program, along with more than $1.3 million from Iowa City and $27,000 from Coralville.

The program was put into place in order to assist low-income residents affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have finished the damn job,” Supervisor Jon Green of Lone Tree said in a statement. “Regardless of the technical language in the contracts, I think it’s clear Johnson County, Iowa City and Coralville all wanted to ensure we helped as many people as we could. Today’s vote puts paid to that promise. For over two years, we’ve called these folks ‘essential’ but we’ve treated them as expendable – not today. I am grateful to the Iowa City Council for voting to fund the final 319 (applicants) and to those just receiving payments, thank you for your patience and forbearance.”

Next board meeting: The board will hold its next formal meeting at 9 a.m. Sept. 1.