How Hospitals affect University Heights

While door knocking I was speaking with a new neighbor last week when he casually dropped the fact that the new UI Children's Hospital was looking to probably hire an ADDITIONAL 100 positions when it opens, projected for March of 2016. (I've been unable to find independent verification) I had no idea that the goal of the hospital project was to increase the size of the department so dramatically. I've been mulling that over for the past week and have thought a lot about the implications that may have for our town. 

The increase in the size of the building is also dramatic. With 12 stories projected above ground, and two levels below ground, (and PARKING even below that) the building will be a prominent feature of the west side landscape.

image courtesy of http://www.uichildrens.org/

University Heights was developed immediately after the opening of the original portion of University Hospital in 1924. An advertising piece that I have from the period states touts that homes would be located "only 5 or 6 blocks from the New Hospital." It also goes on to say. "A lot in University Heights is a safe investment because the $6,000,000 building program of the UNIVERSITY on the West Side will make a big demand for West Side property and will cause values to increase very rapidly.” Their next statement is, “In a few years we predict the West Side Campus of the University will be larger than the East Side, and this will develop a residence section on the West Side of the river as large as we now have on the East Side---a business district with hotels, stores, etc. Iowa City will grow and develop as the University develops… A future vision of Iowa City must be a vision of a New City on the West Side.” At another portion of the brochure is the statement, “University Heights has ample building restriction sufficient to protect all parties. A business district has been planned.”

When our home was built you could see the University Hospitals from the front porch:

 

Another piece of history I thought of is University Heights' historian Pat Yeggy's article about the building of the Grandview Apartments in 1950. This project was initiated due to a critical need for housing for the estimated 600 families that would be moving to the Iowa City area for the new Veteran's Hospital which was at that time under construction. There was opposition to that project too, which sounds a bit familiar today. Read the MINUTES of JAN. 18 & 30, 1950 COUNCIL MEETINGS.

So it seems that the timing of the potential One University Place would be fortuitous for the next round of Hospital expansion, as other major U-Heights development has been in the past.

Some Advice to Consider...

Among the places I look through now and again is the Wise Economy Workshop 

Whose principal, Della Rucker, has a fascinating background and interests in a several of areas that I'm familiar with, teaching and historic preservation. She is now an urban planner with a focus on economic development, and community engagement. I stumbled across a post she wrote nearly a year ago that seems pretty useful to us in U-Heights:
Controlling axe-grinders ain’t enough: Doing real public engagement

I think there is some sage advice for us, but to really understand where she's coming from you need to go back to an earlier post here:
How to run an effective public meeting when dealing with people who have an agenda.

 I thought our work session in June was much better organized than others we have had. I appreciated hearing the council speak first and then getting citizen feedback. I do believe we could do a better job of getting meaningful engagement, and real input from a better cross section of our citizens.

A Friend Indeed!

Did you know that University Heights has the oldest average age housing stock in Johnson County? According our our 2010 Comprehensive Plan:

"The median year built for the homes in this community is 1956, which is much older than homes found in Coralville (1981), Iowa City (1973), and Johnson County (1975), but only slightly older than the state average (1959). Most homes in University Heights (52%) were built between 1950 and 1969. Over 37% of homes were built prior to 1950."

-University Heights Comprehensive Plan, 2010 p. 29

With this fact in mind I'd like to mention a great resource for owners of older homes: The non-profit group Iowa City Friends of Historic Preservation and especially their Salvage Barn. The Salvage Barn is open on Saturday afternoons. The barn is a place where you can purchase modestly priced architectural salvage to help maintain the beauty and integrity of older homes. I have used FHP Salvage Barn materials in our house with great success. The Barn  has materials appropriate to Victorian, Arts and Crafts and Mid-Century Modern homes which are found in University Heights.

Here is a photo of the pergola in our backyard, during construction, that was built almost entirely from materials salvaged from the farmhouse in North Liberty that was salvaged, then demolished to build Garner Elementary School

 

Also FHP offers workshops in practical matters for anyone interested. I will be giving a hands on workshop on how to install salvaged hardwood floors on Sunday, Feb. 24, 2013 from 2-4 PM at the Iowa City Eastside Recyling Center. More information on that can be found at the FHP Facebook Page

Time Machine: 1950 City Council Minutes

As city historian I was going through old minutes  and found these from the first two Council meetings in January, 1950. There are some striking similarities to our current situation, and it certainly makes interesting reading.

At the January 18th meeting there was discussion of a proposed apartment complex south of Marietta and west of George streets. This area was just outside of city limits. The minutes state that it was recognized that there were residents opposed to the project, and it was thought best to invite the developer, Mr. Crawford, to the next council meeting.

Mr Crawford came to the January 30th meeting and a representative of the Marietta neighbors spoke about their objections to the project. Mr Crawford then gave his rebuttal.

To quote the minutes, "After some further discussion Mr. Crawford left. The objectors suggested no course of action for the council to follow and the meeting adjourned."

This brief summary doesn't begin to tell the story as well as the full account (barely two pages long)                      READ IT ALL HERE

Time Machine: 2009 City Election

I was going through old files on my computer and I found the questions from the 2009 election's candidate's forum. The last question at the forum was this:

Please address issues such as the level of funding for police protection, library and other services.

1.      Where do you see our sources of revenue coming from in the future?

(2 minutes)

The two minutes refers to the amount of time we had to answer. In order to stay in the time limit here is what I outlined for my answer:

We finished the 2009 fiscal year on June 30th with a $39K deficit. We had carryover so that we were able to meet our obligations, but the administrative plan for U-H recommends carrying a cash reserve equal to 30%  of the budget. For last year that would have been roughly $210K.