Woodward, Okla. — Woodward city leaders are taking steps to encourage housing and other development in the community.

During their regular meeting Monday evening, city commissioners accepted a 10-foot by 107-foot easement from the Lucas Family Trust to allow for the construction of a water line for two 10-acre lots on Summit Ridge.

"This is to serve properties that are being constructed there," City Manager Alan Riffel said.

Later during his brief report to the city commission, Riffel alluded to other efforts by the city to address the need for development that has been spurred by recent growth.

"We are dealing with several issues on the developing aspects of the community and the growth situation we find ourselves in and dealing with," he said.

Riffel added that city administrators are working on "providing developers those situations and circumstances so that they come in here and benefit the community."

"That is (happening) on many fronts at this point," he said.

The News spoke with Riffel on Tuesday to learn more about how the city is to working these development and growth issues.

First, the city manager clarified that he was referencing development issues which range "from business to residential to industry."

To promote industrial development, which is mostly located west of the city, Riffel said the city continues to look at "infrastructure extensions in terms of water and sewer lines to help establish industry close to the city."

For residential development, he said city leaders are meeting with developers locally and from out-of-state about opportunities to build both multi-family and single-family dwellings within the city.

He said the focus residentially is to encourage development in areas on the south side of the city and pre-existing but incomplete subdivisions "because the infrastructure is already there" to support new home construction.  He referenced a sewer-line extension project a couple of years ago that extended service south along 8th St. and then west along Hanks Trail.

Retail development is expected to come right along the heels of residential development, Riffel said, noting that retail growth will be addressed in a similar manner as residential.

"We're looking at what potentially could be done to fill up those areas that are ripe for development," he said.

This includes re-examining "former options" such as street development between Hanks Trail and 8th Street on the back side of Wal-Mart, he said.



NEW AUDITOR APPROVED

In other action during Monday's city commission meeting, the board approved engaging the auditing services of RS Meacham, CPAs & Advisors, out of Clinton.

For the past 9 years, the city has engaged the services of local CPA Derrell S. White to conduct the city's annual financial audit.

During that time, Riffel said the city has been "satisfied with Derrell's audits."

However, both he and Assistant City Manager Doug Haines said that the time has come to change auditors in an effort to increase governmental accounting transparency.

"Most cities do a rotation of auditors and it's time for us to do a rotation," Haines said.

"This will provide an increased level of transparency by letting someone other than the same firm do our audits year after year," Riffel said.

Haines previously told The News that engaging a new auditing firm will also help bring a "fresh look" to the city's overall financial policies and procedures.



AIRPORT ISSUES

City commissioners also addressed some issues relating to the West Woodward Airport.

The first addressed bids for a taxilane rehabilitation project at the airport, which would utilize FAA Airport Improvement Plan (AIP) grant funds, to rehabilitate Hangar F taxilanes as well as the north taxilane and taxiway intersection.

"I ask that under the circumstances we set a contingency, if we do apply for this, for receipt of funds," Riffel said.

The circumstances, to which the city manager was referring, surround a recent inspection report that was released by the Federal Aviation Administration concerning the use of properties around the airport.

In that FAA inspection report, the city is accused of being in non-compliance with certain agreements with the FAA concerning the proceeds from the lease and/or sale of those properties.  As a consequence of that non-compliance, the FAA report states the city could become ineligible for future AIP funds.

Riffel said since the taxilane rehabilitation project was previously approved by the FAA, the funding should be in place to continue with that project.

Acting on his recommendation and the recommendation of consulting firm Lochner, the city commissioners went ahead and approved a $783,139.61 bid from JLT Corporation, contingent upon receipt of AIP funds.

AIP funds are part of a 90/10 grant program, in which the FAA would provide 90 percent of the project funds, leaving the city to pay the remaining 10 percent of costs.

But while moving forward on this airport improvement project, the city commissioners also met in executive session to discuss the FAA inspection report which potentially threatened the funding stream for future improvements at the airport.

No action was taken during or after the hour-long executive session in which City Attorney Aaron Sims provided commissioners with legal advice about the "investigation into the activities of the city as it relates to its airport."

Following the executive session, Sims spoke on behalf of the commission regarding the city's official response to the issues raised by the FAA inspection report.

"We as a city are going to take these issues very seriously and plan to address these matters completely and aggressively.  We are reviewing all these findings, the items the FAA have brought to our attention, and we're going to address those," the attorney said.