Why is North Liberty appealing the condemnation award?

The City of North Liberty has asked the District Court for Johnson County to look at the amount awarded to Dr. Gary Weinman for the access required to install underground utility infrastructure to serve Liberty High School and the surrounding area. In setting the price, we believe the commission ignored the standards laid out in state law.
Compensating property owners for easements is not just legally required, it is the right thing to do. However, the $80,000 compensation represents nearly three times the property’s appraised value, while the other 12 property owners — who came to agreements voluntarily — agreed to compensation in line with their lands’ fair market values. To pay one owner disproportionately is neither fair to the others nor is it good stewardship of public money.
This money is not for purchase of the land; the private owners will continue to own the property. Rather, this compensation is for the right to access the land, lay pipe underground and restore the land before returning to them for their use.
Throughout this process, and despite findings by the state district court, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the US Army Corp of Engineers, Dr. Weinman has continued to make accusations that are not based in fact or finding.
In his February ruling, District Court Judge Christopher Bruns noted that Dr. Weinman had “clearly ‘shotgunned’ this case. He has vaguely asserted multiple alleged legal bases for his underlying claims, but has only addressed some of those bases in detail.” That Dr. Weinman has continued to make statements contrary to fact is disappointing.
Why doesn’t the city use land it already owns?
The simple truth is that there is no way to expand utilities service to the site of Liberty High School only using land the City of North Liberty already has access to. Until the school’s area was brought into North Liberty in 2014, the site was outside of city limits. Any route requires the acquisition of easements from private land owners.
How did the City of North Liberty decide where the infrastructure should go, and what alternatives were considered?
In 2013, engineers began studying how waste water infrastructure could most efficiently serve the high school and the development it will drive. They eventually identified two potential routes for sewer infrastructure: “Muddy Creek,” which follows the creek basin, including a section of Dr. Weinman’s 70 acres; and “Deep Cut,” which would cost an estimated $1.5 million more to construct, required extremely rare 50-foot pipe depths that would be more dangerous and expensive to construct and maintain, and would disturb more land during construction. Fox Engineering, who designed the project, spent at least 1,500 hours assessing options and planning and designing this project.
Dr. Weinman has said there’s a route for this infrastructure that is “half the cost, shorter, less deep and safer.” Why isn’t the city following that route?
During the court hearing in February, a civil engineer hired by Dr. Weinman proposed, after eight hours of study, a route that would run through private land, but not Dr. Weinman’s, north of Dubuque Street. The district court judge found that the city’s engineers “had looked at this approximate route and had not developed a formal proposal based on it because it also would be a ‘deep cut’ route and the cost of the route would be substantially higher than the route over the Weinman property.”
Additionally, the court noted that Dr. Weinman’s engineer “did not provide information as to whether his proposal would allow service of the entire basin or just the school, the diameter of sewer line used for his cost estimate, and other variables relevant to a comparison of his proposal to the other proposals considered by North Liberty.”
In short, we looked at many options, including routes similar to the one proposed by Dr. Weinman, and did not find them to be cheaper, safer or less intrusive. The state district court agreed that the planned route, designed after extensive study by well-qualified engineers, is logical and responsible.
Has the city studied the environmental impact of this project?
Yes. As part of planning and design, environmental specialists did field work in 2014 and prepared reports assessing the potential impact to wetlands and animal habitat, which was found to be minimal. The consultants offered suggestions for further mitigation of potential harm, which were incorporated into the design and construction plans. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources and US Army Corps of Engineers have both reviewed these assessments and issued the required permits. When work is complete, the environment will be restored above the infrastructure and replanted with appropriate plants, including field crops, trees and grasses.
What about threatened species and environments?
During environmental assessment, no threatened species were found along the route. At the February hearing, Dr. Weinman was given the opportunity to provide further information. However the court found that “there is zero evidence thus far in this case that any Indiana bats actually roost in these trees.” The court further found “there is also no evidence that ornate box turtles are present in the area that will be condemned. They are present on the neighbor’s property, but that area is not directly contiguous to the easement. It is separated from the easement by the bulk of Dr. Weinman’s prairie restoration. The area where the easement will be located is not as suitable for turtle habitation as the area left untouched. Further, the IDNR has already outlined a plan pursuant to which a search or survey for the turtles can be conducted and, if any are present, they can be moved out of harm’s way until after the construction is completed.” Never the less, we are following a precautionary action plan to further mitigate any potential harm to these species.
Why don’t developers pay for the infrastructure?
They do.
Whenever a property owner makes a new connection to the city’s water or sewer systems, they pay a connection fee based on their project’s construction costs and the area to be served. The Iowa City Community School District and any future developers will pay fees that offset the cost of the public project.
Where can I get updates and more information about this project?
You can find maps and additional documents, and get updates, at northlibertyiowa.org/projects. If you have a question, or are looking for additional information, get in touch.