Othello council moves forward with annexations

OTHELLO — Othello city officials will research the steps required to annex city-owned properties that are currently outside of the town’s city limits.

Community Development Director Anne Henning listed the properties and talked about the annexation process during the May 2 Othello City Council meeting.

“It’s an easy process for a city to annex city-owned properties when they are for a municipal purpose,” Henning said. “So there are some very easy ones, and there are some more difficult ones.”

The properties include PJ Taggares Park, which is in the process of being purchased by the city from Adams County Parks and Recreation District 1. Two of the city’s wells are on the list, the city’s wastewater treatment facility and the now-closed animal shelter. There’s also a right of way along the Potholes Canal.

The well sites and Taggares Park would require a public hearing and an ordinance approved by the council, Henning said. The old animal shelter and the property near the canal would be more problematic, because city officials would have to prove the land serves a city purpose, she said.

“The wastewater treatment facility, there are definitely some ownership issues there that need to be untangled,” she said.

The city has a deed showing it owns the entire sewer treatment facility, but the Adams County Assessor’s website shows a different owner for part of that land, Henning said. In addition, the facility is outside the city’s urban growth boundary. Henning said the UGB would have to be enlarged before the property can be annexed.

“That’s really weird that the (sewer treatment facility) is not in the (urban) growth area,” said council member John Lallas.

City officials also will need to determine if the land between the facility and the existing city limits is already in the UGB, she said.

Council members decided via a simple consensus rather than a formal vote to start the process of annexing Taggares Park, the two wells and the animal shelter.

Henning said there is an alternate method to annex the canal bank.

Mayor Shawn Logan said city officials would research that process prior to moving forward with that particular annexation.

The next regularly scheduled Othello City Council meeting is set to take place on May 9 at 6:30 p.m. at Othello City Hall at 500 E. Main Street in Othello.

Cheryl Schweizer may be reached at cschweizer@columbiabasinherald.com.