Maharishi Community wants to break off from Fairfield

After 25 years of calling Fairfield home, members of the Maharishi University of Management say they want their own community. A group of about 300 people live in the development north of Fairfield. Developer Rogers Badgett says the new city would build a better relationship between Maharishi and the community of Fairfield.Badgett says a separate city would also help the Maharishi community to grow. He says they have additional roads and services they want that are not created with current tax dollars.Jefferson County Auditor Scott Reneker says the county recently imposed a bond to pave roads just in the Maharishi development. Reneker says if the area becomes a new town, that city’s residents wouldn’t be subject to all county taxes. Reneker says he thinks it’s “going to be a war” over services.The Maharishi community plans to submit a written request to the Iowa City Development Board next month. The board will have to see if the Maharishi area can provide basic services like water, sewer and policing.