March 29, 2024

Wheeler, Evans appointed to fill city seat on CCRC

Ty Wheeler, Osceola city administer/clerk, is officially a full-fledged member of Clarke County Reservoir Commission (CCRC).

During an Osceola City Council meeting Tuesday, April 5, Mayor Thomas Kedley appointed Wheeler as the CCRC representative for the city of Osceola.

Brian Evans, chief executive officer of Clarke County Hospital, was appointed as the CCRC alternate.

Wheeler replaces Clint Walters, general manager of Osceola Foods, who was appointed to the position in January.

“Ty has been filling in pretty much the entire time, almost the entire time, of the appointment and he’s been doing a fantastic job on that committee representing the city, I feel,” Kedley said.

Building a reservoir

The filling of CCRC seats is an important issue because CCRC is in the process of building a reservoir in northern Clarke County.

The reservoir project comes from nearly three decades of work to build a new reservoir in Clarke County to replace West Lake. The reservoir was to provide a water supply for Osceola and Southern Iowa Rural Water Association (SIRWA) with an 816-acre lake, which could provide 2.2 million gallons of water per day.

Funding for the project includes many sources, especially funding from the local-option sales tax.

There have been many direct legislative setbacks involved with the project, as well as eminent domain, which is taking private property for a government purpose.

Filling the seats

Kedley discussed the reason Walters wouldn’t be in the community anymore, or available to be in the CCRC seat.

“He got a great promotion in his job at Hormel. He’s done a great job for us here,” he said.

As for why Evans was chosen as the CCRC alternate, Kedley said, “My reason ... is look what he’s doing with the hospital. Number one (in quality rankings) in the nation, enough said.”

Other city appointments

The final appointment Kedley made during the council meeting was Kevin Emanuel to the city’s planning and zoning commission. He said Emanuel owned many businesses in Osceola.

“He’s a self-made businessman and he’s a quality candidate, overall,” Kedley said.