The Riverside City Council boldly went where others have gone at its regularly scheduled meeting Monday night, Oct. 4.

Mike Meinders, president and sales manager of Voyage Home Museum in Riverside, said interest in the museum and Star Trek movie and TV movement has gone into warp drive online, resulting in an expanding number of donations of memorabilia to the museum and tourism inquiries about Riverside.

Riverside is known as the future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk, the star of the original TV series and first movies played by William Shatner. Riverside was prominently referenced in the Star Trek movie remake in 2009 with Chris Pine playing Kirk.

On one recent trip to collect memorabilia from a Star Trek fan, Meinders said his truck was filled with 46 boxes of collectables.

“This year’s TrekFest was a phenomenal year for all of us,” he told City Council members.

Meinders and Mary Jane Stumpf, the museum’s treasurer, were among those giving a report on the museum to the City Council, which awarded a grant of $19,000 for fiscal year 2021. Meinders asked for similar financial support from the city for fiscal year 2022.

According to a previous report given to the City Council, the TrekFest weekend held in June attracted 5,000 to Riverside.

The museum will soon be adjusting its hours to 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and noon to 4 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday and Friday. It will be closed on Wednesday and Thursday.

The museum, which is located on Highway 22 across from Railroad Park, includes a large replica of the USS Enterprise spaceship and a number of displays and collectables. There is no charge for visitors. The number of volunteer hours run into the thousands, Meinders said.

Councilperson Edgar McGuire, who would like to see a bigger museum, even made an admission Monday night when Meinders asked if he had ever visited the museum.

“I can’t say I’ve been there,” McGuire said.

That will soon change, as Meinders and McGuire talked after the meeting of arranging a visit.

“Star Trek is huge,” McGuire said. “I don’t think we can do enough. I’d like to see it a lot bigger.”

“Our tourism – it [Star Trek and the museum] is what is going to bring people in,” Meinders said.

The City Council approved a Community Visioning Program grant that includes $2,000 in matching funds from the city’s hotel/motel tax fund.

The Community Visioning Program, which is coordinated by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, focuses on landscape and transportation projects in communities across the state. Riverside will be paired up with a landscape architect, and Iowa State project staff and student interns. The program is focused on small rural communities in Iowa.

The $2,000 in matching funds will used to finance a future project in Riverside.

The City Council tabled a decision on the residency requirement of the city administrator because Council Person Tom Sexton was absent on Monday night. At issue is a requirement calling for the city administrator to live within 10 miles of Riverside. Other employees must live within 20 miles.

Council Person Andy Rodgers wanted to resolve the issue at Monday’s meeting, but the council voted 3-1 to delay discussion until its next meeting on October 18.

The City Council also:

• Approved waiving the review of a planned addition to Timberline Estates, a housing subdivision located southeast of Riverside off 135th Street. The plans will be reviewed by Washington County officials.

• Approved the removal and grinding of a large tree damaged by a construction project, and its replacement, up to $1,000. The tree is on the property of Council Person Kevin Mills.

• Set November 22 as the date for a work session that will focus on discussing the hiring of a paramedic and fire inspector for the city.

Pick-up dates for discarded leaves will be set at the October 18 council meeting.