MUSCATINE, Iowa — During Thursday night’s meeting, the Muscatine City Council also took action on the following items:

Development deals

The Council unanimously approved separate development agreements between the City and two local businesses.

Newcomb Properties, 3606 Grandview Ave., and Curry’s Transportation Service Inc., 4200 U.S. Highway 61 South, are both in the Southend Urban Renewal Area. Developers in the area are able to apply for financial incentives in the form of incremental property tax payments. Both applied for and were granted the agreements.

Hershey Avenue project

A resolution setting a public hearing for 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6, was unanimously approved for the Hershey Avenue Area Sanitary and Storm Sewer Separation Project Contract 2.

The project is to be funded by the 1-percent local option sales tax and construction should begin in the spring of 2010.

The project will include the construction of approximately 8,600 feet of new sanitary sewer and 7,150 feet of new storm sewer and will include street removal and replacement. It includes the areas of Hershey Avenue from Clinton to Green streets, Mississippi Drive from Green Street to Broadway, and portions of Main Street, Eighth Street, W. Third Street, W. Second Street, Elm Street, Ash Street and Busch Street.

Grant money

The Council unanimously approved the use of a federal Justice Assistance Grant by the Muscatine Police Department. The local grant funds in the amount of $14,283 will be used for non-budgeted items such as technology, equipment and local initiatives.

Purchases

The Council unanimously approved:

- A request to purchase a drag hose direct injector for the Water Pollution Control Plant. Three bids were received with the low bid coming from Jim Hodel Inc. of Roanoke, Ill., for $20,700. 

- An upgrade to the phone system at the Water Pollution Control Plant for $5,600.52. 

- The purchase of utility vehicles for park maintenance and the Muscatine Municipal Golf Course. Three bids were received with the low bid from the John Deere Corp. represented by Elder Implement of Muscatine in the amount of $8,682.11 per vehicle for a total amount of $17,364.22. The park maintenance vehicle will be used primarily on the riverfront. $10,000 had been budgeted for each vehicle. 

- The purchase of a sand bunker grooming machine for the golf course. Three bids were received with the low bid being from Turf Werks of Johnston for $13,200. There was a $5,000 trade-in allowance for a Sand Pro, aerifier and bed knife grinder for a net cost of $8,200. $9,000 had been budgeted for the purchase.

- $10,980 for the purchase of the Mobile Vision Server/PC equipment that works with the Muscatine Police Department’s squad car video system from New Jersey-based Mobile Vision. Without the new server the department cannot replace any of the squad camera systems. $10,000 had been budgeted for the purchase, however, the department is asking for an additional $980 due to higher travel costs for the installation personnel and to upgrade to a better server. Also included in the upgraded server is better software. The $10,980 cost includes installation and training on the new software.

- The purchase of portable radios for the police department for $7,258.95. $7,200 had been budgeted.