Atalissa will continue to pursue a request to place a commemorative salute in the community on the Bunkhouse Boys, a group of men contracted from Texas to work in the West Liberty turkey processing plant, it was decided Monday, July 12, at the regular meeting of the Atalissa City Council held at Atalissa City Hall.
Mayor Bob Schmidt reported being in contact with the originator of the idea, Popcorn Redman, a graduate student who is majoring in disability studies at City University of New York, who wrote the city last month asking for suggestions on providing some kind of historic marker honoring the dozens of mentally challenged men who lived in a former Atalissa school house near the present water tower, imported from Texas to work in the local turkey processing plant then known as Henry Turkey Service.
The major said he’s heard “strong comments from the public” about the proposal, noting there were many good memories about the group of more than three dozen men who lived in the community and participated in many activities and functions while there was also some “horrible” stories about living conditions in the bunckhouse built in 1903, something Redman referred to as “dark and disturbing parts.”
The facility no longer exists in the community and there was talk about placing the salute at the site of the old school, but it’s been well noted the school’s flagpole and school bell were both saved and moved to a memorial area next to the Atalissa Fire Department.
Thoughts are to create a plaque with the names of all the members of the bunkhouse boys that lived in the community but it was noted that list might be sketchy since there were many who served the plant and community for about a 34-year period.
Redman said in her initial statements that “bringing the situation out of the ‘shadows of shame’ would be healing for the town and for all involved,” making her pitch to the city, noting she is even willing to help raise the money to make the salute a reality, showing her dedication to the project despite never having been to Atalissa in her entire life.
After tabling the issue in June, the mayor put the question to the council again, asking, “Is this something we want to do?” The council then voted to pursue the idea, providing help to Redman and her desire to honor the “boys” of the bunkhouse. The council said the Atalissa Fire Department Board would also have to approve placing any type of memorial in the area west of the firehouse next to Cherry Street.
Redman said she looks forward to getting feedback on the project and wondered about the “next steps” she could take to help bring the project to fruition. “Although I am geographically miles away, I feel as if part of my heart is there with the Atalissa community,” she wrote.
In other business, the city heard from Travis Parry, a local business owner who has done a lot of work for the city, concerning a proposal made by water and sewer supervisor Matt Goodale last month suggesting the city invest over $45,000 to provide high tech meters, much of the costs being covered by $42,721 in federal COVID-19 stimulus funds provided to municipalities earlier this year. Goodale did not attend the meeting, having other obligations.
Although Parry continued to point out he thought it was a “great idea,” he questioned whether the city had the leadership to “ram-rod it” through to fruition, noting the project could take a while to complete and, “in reality, many of you may not be in your positions.”
He said other city projects have been left on the backburner upon changeover of leadership and asked the city to set up a committee that would “make sure it gets done,” the deadline of spending the funds by December, 2024, in switching over approximately 134 meters.
“I’d just hate to see a project like this fall on its face,” Parry said, who also pointed out the project could cost as much as $10,000 more than the federal funds will cover, noting those funds will need to come from city coffers, residents or possibly grants.
The mayor said he appreciated the input and agreed with the assumption the meter change must be taken on by citizens willing to make sure the project gets completed. The council did not act on a proposal to buy about 25 meters the city could use as an experiment in testing the system which operates through cell phone towers, deciding to get input from Goodale and other citizens before making the investment.
Parry also said he would pursue completing a riser project for sewer systems in the community and pointed out other water problems in the community the city needs to resolve.
In the public comment portion of the meeting, Karen Fedderson said something needs to be done about getting mail to the city, noting she sent three certified letters that were returned undeliverable because there was no one at city hall to take the mail.
Patty Army of the Atalissa Church of Christ also made a check presentation of $3,000, a donation to the Atalissa Fire Department that was accepted by Fire Chief Mike Smock who attended the meeting. The money is to be used toward the department’s emergency heating and cooling station presently under construction in the firehouse, to be used in long-term electrical outages and other situations.
Amy Windus, who has put together a clothing outlet known as “Amy’s closet” to help residents asked the city again to host a special “Back to School Night” for families and youngsters in the community, providing not only an opportunity to get clothes, but school supplies, hoping to put it together with a bookmobile visit on Sunday, Aug. 8, at the Atalissa Fire Department.
After Smock said the fire department would donate $100 for supplies if the city matched the donation, the council voted to approve a $100 donation to help Windus buy school supplies for the event. There would also be other activities for youngsters at the event.
In other public comments, Jan Welsch praised the fire department for their assistance with an incident she recently had, calling the service “fantastic” and saying the emergency first responders “made me feel I was important.”