Ottawa annexes another small lot to make water, sewer planning easier

Ottawa once again grew a little bit bigger on Tuesday night, adding another small piece of land to the property rolls.

The Ottawa City Council conducted a public hearing that led to the annexation of a small area of land owned by the American Commercial Bank and Trust, formerly the First National Bank of Ottawa.

The move is the latest in a series of annexing small parcels, ones that Mayor Robb Hasty likened to “the teeth in a jack-o-lantern’s smile,” making them eligible to have water and sewer lines extended to those properties.

In this instance, the ACB sought to annex the back half of a lot that’s front half was already in the city limits.

“There have been four different properties that we’ve been working on for the last six weeks or so,” Hasty said. “It’s a case that one property is in, one property is out. It’s a situation where the neighbor is already in, now they want to be in. There was one situation where properties were annexed around an area, creating an island of sorts.

“None of them are very large or of particular interest, it’s just that we have to plan for them with our water and sewer lines.”

On that subject, the council approved advertising for bids for putting in a short water main extension to serve three homes located on Oak Terrace Drive, properties that were annexed last month. Commissioner Brett Barron said he hoped the project could be completed this year.

Another public hearing was set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1, to consider an annexation agreement with Debra Norby for the property at 2128 Field Place.

The council also passed a resolution amending their agreement with Kenneth and Debra Knoll regarding the mural recently installed at 227-229 W. Main St. Hasty explained that the language of the agreement didn’t strictly say who would be responsible for any damage that would befall the large work of art due to storms and high winds.

“We just assumed that since it was given to us that we would be responsible for any damage,” Hasty said. “We just felt that we’d better have that in writing should something unexpected happen.”

In other action, the council:

• approved the hiring of Alaina Iverson at Deputy City Clerk.
• heard from Commissioner Wayne Eichelkraut an invitation to the public to attend the Fall Festival Parade downtown at noon on Sept. 29. The Jesse White Tumblers will make an appearance there.
• approved an agreement with J & M Displays for the fireworks put on in conjunction with the annual Festival of Lights.
• approved a transit service agreement between NCAT and the Peru Public Library.
• authorized an agreement with Renwick and Associates for the next phase of the water and storm sewer separation project on the city’s west side. “The project is moving along,” Barron said.