By Sam Parsons

The Oskaloosa City Council held a meeting last night and heard a presentation from Development Services Director Shawn Christ about vacant buildings in the city. Christ said that estimates based on data from the Water Department find that the city of Oskaloosa has about 130 vacant residential properties and about 35 vacant commercial properties. Christ then proposed that the city council explore the option of enacting a vacant buildings ordinance, providing examples of the different ordinances currently in place in other surrounding cities. The council agreed to conduct research on the idea of a vacant buildings ordinance, but no action was taken.

The council also made the next step in the long process of planning its long term improvement project with the Wastewater Treatment Facility. The council will hold its next regular meeting on October 3.