By Sam Parsons

The Pella City Council met this week to discuss proposed repairs to the Bos Landen Conference Center. A public hearing was held on the repairs, which became necessary after a frozen water pipe exploded in the center in 2020. 3 bids were received on the repairs, but while the engineer’s estimate of costs was roughly $750,000, all 3 bids came in at over $1.2 million. With such a high disparity, staff recommended to the council that they table approval of the repairs until the next meeting so they can discuss funding sources for it, and the council followed that recommendation.

The council also approved appointments to the Ad Hoc Committee for Community Center Improvements, which was conceived in October when the council decided to move forward in the process with those improvements. The appointed members were Dave Hopkins, Brenda Huisman, Pati Van Zante, Arvin Van Zante, Amanda Schwerdtfeger, Rhonda Kermode, Mary Robertson, and a representative from the Union Street Players still to be determined.

The next regular council meeting for the city of Pella is scheduled for December 20.