Council update on rejuvenation of Old Town Hall

Monday night’s meeting of the Odessa Town Council was led by Mayor Pro Tem Lois Hubbard in the absence of Mayor Doug Plinski.

Representing the Old Town Hall Rejuvenation Committee, Lise Ott reported that a grant application requesting funds to fix the broken concrete front stairs of the building was unsuccessful. But the rummage sales and donations made to the committee have already reached a mark of $3,000. Additional items will be offered on the Odessa Virtual Yard Sale running on Facebook in order to obtain more donations to the Old Town Hall fund.

Therefore, the committee decided to repair rather than replace the concrete stairs and to take up the Odessa Lions Club’s offer to replace, at their expense, the wheelchair ramp located at the Alder Street entrance with an ADA-compliant version. Letters will be sent out to businesses in town soliciting additional donations to ensure that the work is completed by Deutsches Fest weekend in September. Pressure washing, filling of cracks and painting of the exterior are also planned to take place by September.

The council approved a variance request for construction of a shed on Kelly Watkins’ property. Although the shed would encroach upon the required setback area, none of Watkins’ neighbors voiced any objections and council members approved the variance unanimously.

Police report

Police chief Helen Coubra reported that her department, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department and the Odessa School District held a mock lockdown drill at the school last week which for the most part remained a secret until the Honeywell Instant Alert System sent out alerts to parents and others signed up to receive them. The alert also asked that everyone refrain from contacting their children at school to keep the secret and allow the events to unfold as if there had been a true emergency. The drill was handled successfully. No one was injured or harmed in any way, and responders were aware of only a few problem areas where improvements in their responses might be made in the future, Coubra said.

Odessa police and the community will observe National Night Out on August 5 at Reiman Park with food, various giveaways and opportunities to meet with law enforcement personnel.

Coubra praised the excellent police work of officer Bryce Peterson, who recently stopped a suspicious truck in Odessa with an attached lift mechanism. It turned out the driver had several outstanding warrants for his arrest on charges of metal theft. Fortunately, Peterson was able to deliver him to the Lincoln County Jail before he would have had an opportunity to victimize any local area farmers.

Coubra reminded citizens not to leave pet food out on their porches or in their yards. Reports of wild animals in town feasting on pet food have grown more numerous in recent weeks. Raccoons, skunks and squirrels have been observed, as have larger wild cats that might have been in the bobcat or cougar families. Such predators as these wild cats, as well as coyotes, are then attracted to the growing population of their wild prey. Coubra said the problem could develop into one in which the safety of small children is put at risk. She asked everyone to be conscientious about picking up food once their own pets have eaten.

Public works

Public works director Rod Webster reported he met with officials from the state Department of Ecology at Odessa’s meat processing facility, L.P.C.A. to see whether readings on some of the plant’s effluent were in compliance after several days of intensive hog slaughter. No problems were found.

Webster also had a meeting scheduled last Thursday morning with government officials regarding mitigation of the vegetation growing within the bed of Crab Creek inside the Odessa town limits. Fairly good-sized cottonwood trees have taken root there. The scheduled time came and went with no sign of the officials, leaving Webster still with no clear idea of how to proceed with cleaning out the vegetation. He expressed worry that heavy rainfall could produce high water levels and fast-flowing streams that could uproot the trees, sending them into bridges downstream and causing unnecessary damage.

Webster said the pool is being readied for the summer season, and employee Gerald Greenwalt has been installing new fittings and rebuilding pumps prior to the opening. Webster and pool committee member Lois Harp praised the efforts of the Friends of the Pool, who spent virtually all of the money they have been raising for the past several years to complete necessary concrete work and repairs. If left undone, the pool would not have been allowed to open this summer.

This year’s lifeguards are Kolby Crossley, manager; Chelsea Fisher, assistant manager; Alexa Boss, assistant manager; Davianne Minaker; Casey Schlomer; Shelbey Watkins; Katelyn Worley; Laura Kinney and alternate Brianna Johnson. The pool opens June 24, with swimming lessons being offered for two 2-week sessions, the first beginning July 8, the second July 22.