City officials still not sure what to do about vegetable and flower gardens in street boulevards

An hour-long meeting of the Decorah Utilities Committee on Monday night failed to reach an agreement on whether the city should permit boulevard plantings.  The present city ordinance is "ambiguous" on the question, says city council member Steve Matter.

Matter says points raised in support of the idea are the beautification of property in the city and the ties into the food & fitness campaigns in Decorah.

He says points raised in opposition to the idea included soil runoff into sewers; mud on sidewalks and street; and visibility problems for cars backing up.

Another meeting of the Utilities Committee will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday, August 16th, to continue the discussion.