Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19 and the loss of major events such as Tulip Time and other tourism-based activities, the City of Pella continued to push ahead with planning for several major initiatives in the community over the past 12 months.
Mayor Don DeWaard says the city council worked to lay additional groundwork for projects that will start to see movement in 2021, despite revenue hits taken in some areas because of closures and the reduction of travel to the community, which he says were offset by other revenue sources that has the city remaining in strong financial position. A growth in local option sales tax, additional electric revenues, and funding from the CARES Act passed by Congress in the spring and state of Iowa programs have kept the city above water and exceeding budget projections.