OTTAWA — It took two split votes Wednesday before county commissioners approved a change in the county’s agreement with the city of Ottawa allowing the city to control most planning and zoning matters in an area just outside the city limits. The change would give the county control of permits and building inspections of most residential property in the urban growth area, an area of about a mile outside the city limits. Under the change, the city would continue to handle permits and inspections of industrial and commercial properties and new housing subdivisions. Commission chair David Hood, whose first motion to reject the changes failed on a 3-2 vote, called for other commissioners to reject the proposed change and to repeal the entire agreement. Hood said that he hasn’t seen enough growth in the urban growth area to justify allowing the city to have any control over it. The second motion – to approve the change – was passed on a 4-1 vote. However, Commissioner Steve Harris said that rejecting the change would leave the original agreement, which is what caused the recent controversy among some county residents in the area, in place. Approving the agreement would allow the county to continue making changes in the agreement as needed, he said. Because both the city and county would have to agree on dissolving it, calls to repeal the original aren’t realistic. Commissioner Don Stottlemire, who cast the dissenting vote against the agreement six years ago and said he continues to oppose it, voted for the change on the second vote, saying it was an improvement over the original agreement. Gene Hirt, Williamsburg; Leonard Cheasbro, who has a commercial car lot in the urban growth area; and Butch Riddle, who lives southwest of Ottawa and isin the area, urged the county to reject to change and to repeal the original agreement. Franklin County Clerk Shari Perry, who also lives in the urban growth expressed skepticism to the change, saying she’s concerned about keeping city zoning categories in the area, and expressed opposition to the original agreement.
Wednesday, March 7, 4 p.m.
