IOWA CITY

The Johnson County Board of Supervisors is pausing its issuing of proclamations at the request of Supervisor V Fixmer-Oraiz.

Fixmer-Oraiz told the Board at its August 30 work session that the proclamation process and presentations have produced bad feelings on multiple occasions.

The most recent incident came in early July when a proclamation presentation honoring Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives Awareness Day produced a verbal tussle between Supervisor Royceann Porter and Sikowis Nobiss, founder and executive director of the Great Plains Action Society.

Porter, who broke racial barriers in 2022 when she was the first Black to serve as chair of the Board of Supervisors, thanked Nobiss for her appearance and efforts with Indigenous residents. But Nobiss was offended when Porter asked for considerations be made for people of all races.

“It should be for all people,” Porter said at the July 6 session. “Indigenous, whatever. It has to be reciprocated.”

Nobiss halted the presentation and asked for the certified proclamation immediately, skipping the usual photo-taking opportunity that occurs with most proclamation ceremonies.

That incident, Fixmer-Oraiz said, is just one of several that have occurred. A pause to review and adjust proclamation procedures is needed, Fixmer-Oraiz said.

“The process should be examined,” Fixmer-Oraiz said.

The Board agreed to pause the program, although two proclamations were issued at the August 31 formal session: Celebration of Labor Day and Workers’ Contributions, and Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.

540^th Street Bidding

The Board set 1 p.m. September 19 as the bid-letting deadline for an upcoming pavement rehabilitation project on 540th Street SW, north of Kalona.

The project will include resurfacing the road from Highway 1, where Stringtown Grocery is located, and east to Gable Avenue. Work is being planned for April 2024 although preparations could begin as early as this fall once a contractor is selected.

The work in April will involve replacing the road’s current chip-seal surface with an asphalt surface. Ed Bartels, Johnson County Assistant Engineer, said the new road would be 33 feet wide with a new, drainable base underneath the surface.

The stretch to be resurfaced, which is less than half a mile long, is the precursor to a larger project on 540th Street slated for 2024 on the county’s five-year plan. A $4.1 million pavement rehabilitation project, from Highway 1 west to Calkins Avenue SW, where Hillcrest Academy is located, is in the planning stages.

Board Action

The Board approved $10,000 funding for the Johnson County Sexual Assault Response Team. The money will be used to provide financial help for sexual-assault victims in terms of health care.

The Board approved a 28E agreement with Iowa County for the sharing of mental health advocate costs.

The Board has set its September monthly meeting on subdivision applications and public hearings for 5:30 p.m. Sept. 14.