Oh, fancy seeing you here!  Must be another Tuesday night with the Ames City Council.  I'm Trent...can I buy you a drink?

The council just gave it's approval for design plans for the Southeast entryway project--it's the stretch of Highway 30 from I-35 to South Duff Ave.  This has been in the works for two years while the Iowa Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Transportation's hoops were jumped through.  The main feature of the project will be big light towers on both sides of the highway--very similar to the towers at Main and Clark downtown.  The project should be done in the 2012 construction season.

7:25P:  The council just took up a staff report on GK Development's plan, or lack thereof, for a parking lot change at North Grand Mall.  This project has been extended by the council four times.  The mall's owner is in the house, and I'll guess he'll tell the council that their original plan for the "Streets of North Grand" is out, and they're going back to the drawing board.  I'll also venture a guess there will be some "mea culpas" for a glaring lack of action on the expansion and renovation. 

7:45P:  GK Development's Gregory Kveton is telling the council that they are in the process of redrawing the design plans for a scaled back renovation projcet.  He's showing the council a very crude diagram of what the "new mall" might look like.  He actually told the council that he got that diagram from his architect just today.  Ahem.  He also says his company is prepared, by September 1st to come back to the city with a fully fleshed out plan.  Council questioning begins now.  I'm waiting for the fireworks. 

8:00P:  Yep, Kveton's getting blowed up real good.  Jami Larson's taken a bite, and Riad Mayahni's have a chew right now.  Reminds Kveton that the  whole "new North Grand Mall" discussion started eight and a half years ago.

8:25P:  The council is trying to find a stick to force GK into action.  They're learning that the $480,000 bond being held on parking lot reconfiguration may not be the answer.  That bond is being held for very specific uses.

8:30P:  Council member Peter Orazem still want to give GK the benefit of the doubt on the Sept. 1st plan submittal, says it's of no benefit to revisit eight-and-a-half years of history.  Council member Riad Mahayni says he "loves history, because it teaches us many lessons." 

8:35P: September 1st is the date.  The council votes to deny an extension of the current development plan, and directs city staff to continue negotions with GK Development for the submittal of new site plans.  It will be interesting to see if the company will make good on this.

9:00P:  Oh, city council speedbump.  How I've missed thee.  Just waiting to get past yet ANOTHER sidewalk discussion so we can get public input on the "visioning" plan.

9:15P:  The council approved the "visioning" action plan.  City public relations officer Susan Gwiasda says the plan is "marvelous" and that conversations have already been had with the Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau on integrations mottos, logos, etc.