One day after Woodbury County officials said they will ask for a judicial review on whether the city of Salix followed Iowa law when annexing rural land into the city, the town’s mayor said all required processes were followed.
Mayor Kevin Nelson on Thursday told Siouxland Public Media that the Woodbury County Board of Supervisors were misguided.
“Salix has utilized the law firm of Crary Huff for decades and they advised our team every single step of the way on not just this annexation but every annexation we’ve done. They checked laws, they checked court cases for similar cities that have done voluntary annexation, and they made sure that we did not miss anything, and we followed state law every single step of the way. ,” Nelson said.
The 900 acres tract of land annexed by the city has come under high scrutiny, amid the possibility that it could possibly become the location for a data center.
There was a closed-door summary from the office of County Attorney James Loomis and the supervisors on Tuesday. Afterwards, Board of Supervisors Chairman Mark Nelson said there was unanimity by the five supervisors to have a court review determine if the Salix officials met the intent of Iowa annexation laws.
“The board has directed the county attorney’s office to ask for a judicial review in district court, and we will let a judge decide,” Nelson said.
The annexation vote by the Salix City Council came in April.
In a June 10 Salix City Council meeting, a MidAmerican Energy representative confirmed the company is involved with a proposed development of a data center.
In the July 8 council meeting, residents asked their representatives to place a moratorium on any large-scale data centers being placed on city land. The council voted 3-2 in support of a concept of such a one-year pause.
You can hear more of the extended interview of Mayor Nelson on the What’s The Frequency on Friday at 10 a.m., and also find it online at kwit.org
