IOWA CITY

Johnson County Supervisors Jon Green of Lone Tree and Lisa Green-Douglass were among an Eastern Iowa group of officials who visited Pennsylvania last week for a close look at a rail service that is being proposed for North Liberty, Coralville and Iowa City.

They even got to pilot one of the Pop-Up Metro trains.

“The train folks are friendly nerds, my people,” Green said.

Pop-Up Metro is a railway management company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and says it can establish an 8.2-mile rail segment in just months, linking North Liberty, Coralville and Iowa City. The system would utilize modular loading platforms and two-car sets remanufactured from trains used in London, England.

The proposal, a three-year pilot program, was first presented to the Johnson County Board of Supervisors at its June 12 work session.

Green and Green-Douglass liked what they saw.

“All of the people that went … really liked the train and the concept of clean energy transit,” Green-Douglass said during the August 15 Board formal session. “It always comes down to money. We’ve got a lot of work to do in terms of figuring out, is this doable?”

Green told The News that the project could cost the county about $2 million, “roughly what we pay for one mile of road,” he said.

Green hopes that the University of Iowa sees the benefit in train service and gets involved in the project.

“I hope they see the value in the project and understand they need to have skin in the game,” Green told The News. “This is an opportunity for them to work on deepening their relationship with the community they exist in.”

The trains would go from Forevergreen Street on the North Liberty-Coralville border to Burlington Street in Iowa City with an estimated one-way travel time of 15 minutes.

Johnson County would coordinate efforts with the cities of North Liberty, Coralville and Iowa City for the CRANDIC line, which would be eligible for federal funding.

Shane appointed Auditor

Erin Shane was appointed as Johnson County Auditor during the Board’s formal session August 15.

Chris Edwards, Deputy Auditor, was originally targeted as the replacement for Auditor Travis Weipert, who resigned July 25 due to personal health reasons. However, Edwards turned down the temporary promotion due to an existing heavy work load and recommended Shane, another deputy auditor, instead.

“In my judgment,” Edwards told the Board at its work session August 14, “she’s very well qualified and capable of taking on this role and is ready to set up.”

Shane will remain auditor until just after the November 5 election. Weipert, a Democrat, won the primary in June and was to run unopposed in November. Now, the Democratic, Republican and Libertarian parties may nominate a candidate for the election.

Shane, formerly an associate director of parking & transportation at the University of Iowa, had strong support from the Board.

“I think you’ll do a great job, Erin,” Board Chair Rod Sullivan told her during the Board meeting. “I’m excited for you.”

“Just in the year that you’ve been here, I’ve seen your leadership, attention to detail,” Supervisor V Fixmer-Oraiz said.

ARPA Update

The Board heard a project update from Johnson County’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Leadership Team, which is approaching a federal deadline at the end of the year for obligations of the more than $29 million in ARPA funds.

Obligations must be reported by the end of 2024 with all spending completed by the end of 2026.

A number of county projects are in progress, but the ARPA Team recommended to the Board that funds from designated projects that aren’t showing substantial progress in October be transferred to other projects so that all federal funds are spent.

Board Actions

The Board approved more than $180,000 in Economic Development grants, including $44,500 for the Immigrant Welcome Network of Johnson County.

The Board approved more than $95,000 in Quality of Life grants, including $30,000 for the Iowa City Bike Library.

The Board approved an $82,000 ARPA subrecipient agreement with Greater Iowa City, Inc., for employer engagement services for a wage enhancement program.

Next meeting:

The Board’s next formal session is at 9 a.m. August 22.