When Watonga City Council last met Oct. 17, it agreed to accept the donation of 22 lots in the Sweet Addition to the city. The property was formerly owned by Opportunities Development Corporation.
The lots are in the area of Clevenger Avenue and Seventh Street, close to the railroad tracks on the east side of town. There was no indication what the lots would be used for or whether there was a plan for them at present, other than mowing them and removing some old sheds on the properties.
In other business, the city manager explained two items concerning the airport runway rebuild that was recently concluded. The first item was to pay $24,000 to Ellsworth Construction for its professional services. The second item was the change order to the construction project, decreasing the costs by $114,265. The deduction was a line-item deduct and the reduction was to close out the project. Because it was a 100% grant program, the city is permitted to retain – essentially keep – the unused funds, about $165,000 in all.
The council also held a discussion on the mandatory garbage pickup policy in town. That policy means if a building has water and power, or either, the owner or resident must also pay for garbage pickup even if there is no garbage created there. For example, there are closed businesses on Main Street, such as the one owned by former Watonga Mayor Gary Olsen. The lights and water remain on to the closed antique store, but no garbage is generated. However, the utility bill still charges the address for garbage collection.
Sitting mayor Bill Seitter had suggested the city ask other towns how they handle the situation. “We’ve been asking other cities if they have an exception policy in force, but there have been no good answers,” he said.
Russ Meacham, who owns the accounting firm the city uses, said by email during the meeting that most of the towns he works for use the same system as Watonga, billing each address with a utility meter for garbage pickup as well.
The discussion wound up being just that, a discussion, and there was no action on the matter.
The council also discussed its Rural Energy for America Program – or REAP – grant application. Hopes are that the grant, filed with the Northern Oklahoma Development Authority, will help meet the costs of an emergency communications tower. That tower project is part of the city’s capital improvement plan and is ranked as a necessity for the area. If approved, the grant would reimburse the city for half the project, or about $45,000.