Elk City Commissioners met for their regular meeting Wed., Aug. 16th, at 2 p.m. in City Hall. Mayor Cory Spieker gave the invocation and Jeff Waters led the flag salute. Commissioner Rocky Andresen was not present for the meeting.
They faced a light agenda, with a public hearing prior tackling the agenda items. There were two structures addressed during the public hearing. The first was located at 1507 W. 7th, and the other one was 2609 E. Hwy 66.
City Inspector, Jackie Addington, addressed the commissioners concerning both structures. The heir to the house located on W. 7th Street agreed with Addington about demolishing it. The owner of the second structure, on E. Hwy 66, was present and spoke about fixing it to be rented out. Nothing was done during the public hearing concerning both properties.
Spieker then directed the commissioners to the first item on the agenda, which was to approve the minutes of the Aug. 7th meeting. The second item was the approval of the lease agreement between the City of Elk City and the Elk City Motocross Park, LLC, for the motocross track. This track has been voted Oklahoma’s Track of the Year for the past two years. Although there is only one racer in Elk City, they will be hosting an Oklahoma State Race on Sept. 9th and 10th. This brings racers from Amarillo and Oklahoma City. The commissioners approved the agreement.
They then approved declaring the structure at 1507 W. 7th to be a dilapidated building detrimental to the public health, safety and welfare and ordering removal of the structure. They tabled the structure located at 2609 E. Hwy 66 until Nov. 15th for the owner to make improvements and possibly secure a renter for the old gas station.
Commissioners approved the mayor’s reappointment of Kenneth Hart to the Elk City Housing Authority Board, which will run from Oct. 1, 2023, to Sept. 30, 2026.
The next item on the agenda has been previously tabled from April 19th, 2023. The structure at 702 W. 8th was approved as dilapidated. The owner has removed most of the trailer house. The only part left is the steel frame. Addington said he would try to get with the owner to get this last step completed and removed.
They approved the Purchase Orders FY 2223 and recurring invoices for Aug. 16th, 2023, along with the Purchase Orders FY 23-24 and recurring invoices for Aug. 16th, 2023. City Manager, Tom Ivester, gave a short city manager’s report.
Ivester said that they have been facing a lot of glitches around city hall. One of those was the noise from the PA system that was happening during the meeting. Another problem that they have been working on is the new software system. The issues have been in the area of payroll and purchase orders. They are working through the problems.
They are painting some of the offices in City Hall. Ivester also said that they had a threehour meeting with the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) concerning the downtown project. They worked on the timeline of the construction. He said that they will bid the job in Jan., which means they will begin construction in late May or June. They will start at Main and 3rd Street and work their way south. The projected completion of that part is expected to be Nov. Next, they will work on the sidewalks.
