NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO BY MICHAEL D. DAVIS — Byron Witt shows a map of downtown Toledo during Monday night’s meeting. PHOTO BY MICHAEL D. DAVIS

The March 27 Toledo City Council meeting and public hearing saw much talk over making the first floors of downtown properties residential. Turning the ground floors from storefronts into apartments is not a new idea.

Last discussed in 2016, the thought of putting apartments in downtown has two schools of thought. On one hand, property owners made the argument that making their buildings residential would mean more money for the town and giving people opportunities, especially as there haven’t been many retail businesses willing to set up shop due to the smaller size of the community and the location.

On the other hand, there are worries about what making these buildings into apartments would mean for parking and loitering in high trafficked areas. Downtown Toledo property owner Will Hiles said that he puts money into his building with nothing coming back. The council decided to have a meeting of the Housing Committee with some downtown Toledo property owners before any decision is made.

Toledo Police Chief Dan Quigley reported that between March 13 and March 26, they received 126 calls for service with 11 arrests. Lieutenant Nathan Wunn and Sergeant Kyle Howe completed field training officer certification, making them new primary field training officers for the department.

Officer Nick Ryan will be graduating from the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy on April 21 and then starting his 12 weeks of field training. Reserve Officer DeLaynee Henle has completed five out of six modules for the Reserve Officer certification.

The council approved participation in the Water in Progress internship program, where a high school student would come aboard to learn the ins and outs of the Toledo water/wastewater job. The program lasts 12 weeks, and the city would be reimbursed for the student’s pay up to $5,000 by the state.

Toledo Public Works Director Kendall Jordan told of the soon selling of old equipment, a ’97 F-250, a John Deer mower, and an old street sweeper. The public works have been working on extending the culverts on B Street and street patching around town.

The council also authorized certification of liens for delinquent utility accounts on two Toledo properties.