Several items on the agenda when the Wayne City Council met on Tuesday involved the sale of a piece of property and the purchase of a piece of property
Following a public hearing, council members voted to move forward with the acquisition of Part of Lot 4 and 1.5 feet of the vacated alley in Block 29 of the Original Town of Wayne. The property is currently owned by Larry C. Lindsay and Olga J. Lindsay, Trustees of the Lindsay Family Trust. The purchase price is $196,000.
This property is currently the site of Car Quest. The Lindsay family has had a family business in Wayne for more than 50 years.
City Administrator Wes Blecke said the city and the Lindsay family have been discussing the purchase of this property for several years and with the sale comes the fact that the family would in turn purchase the former Final Touch property.
"The sale of the property and the purchase of the other property would provide a huge opportunity for them to grow their business," said Wayne America Inc., Director Luke Virgil.
A resolution was passed and three readings of an ordinance waived for the sale of the former Final Touch property to Larry C. Lindsay and Olga J. Lindsay, Trustees of the Lindsay Family Trust for $345,000 was approved.
Larry Lindsay told the council "this is a win-win for everybody. We are bursting at the seams and have outgrown what we've got."
There will be a 30-day remonstrance period before the sale can be finalized.
The city plans to ultimately demolish the building for future development, along with the adjacent property, known as the old Riley's property.
Two public hearings were held in connection with the Quad County Property Management, LLC Project.
Mitch Sawyer, owner of the property, and Isaac Kreikemeier, engineer of the project, spoke to the council on a plan to redevelop the "Old Lage Property" in the southeast portion of Wayne.
The developer is working to obtain Tax Increment Financing (TIF) to assist with the cost of developing two industrial buildings and 15 duplexes on the property. The project has already gone before the Community Redevelopment Authority and will go back to the group as the project moves forward.
Two property owners in the area spoke to the council on a request to have an alley way on the west side of the area to allow them a way to have access to their property.
Chad Dorcey and Deb Hammer both own property that is adjacent to the area and were told that this was not ever a concern previously because the property was probably platted in the early 1900s and changes are needed now due to a change in ownership.
Following the first public hearing, council members voted to approve the redevelopment plan for the project.
Also in regard to that particular piece of property, council members approved the Planning Commission's recommendation to rezone the land, described as part of Outlot 1, Roosevelt Park Addition of the City of Wayne and part of the southwest quarter of Section 18, Township 26N, Range 4 of Wayne, from I-1 (Light Industrial and Manufacturing) to R-3 (Residential).
The ordinance will be brought back to council for second and third reading at future meetings.
Senior Center Director Diane Bertrand presented the annual report for the Senior Center.
Bertrand shared information with the council on programs offered at the Senior Center, the cost of providing meals to those who use the services of the Center and the number of meals served by the facility.
She told the council that during the last year, 16,250 meals were served with an average of $1,250 meals per month. This includes in-house, drive through and home delivered. She said that costs for food have gone up and packaging for the meals that are not served in-house have risen considerably.
Following Bertrand's presentation council members approved action for the submission of the Wayne Senior Center's Fiscal Year 2025 detailed plan of operation and budget to the Northeast Nebraska Area Agency on Aging; acceptance of new fiscal year Service Awards that have been awarded by the Area Agency and approval of any revisions made during the fiscal year to the service awards.
Also approved were resolutions authorizing the city administrator to apply for Nebraska Public Transportation Act Funds for the operation of the Wayne Public Transportation System and support the Application for Nebraska Public Transportation Act Funds and approving the local fund match in the amount of $71,158.
In other action, council members approved Resolution 2025-17, which approves the plans, specifications and an estimate of cost for the City of Wayne Well House and Municipal Well 2025-1 (Well No. 12) project.
Resolution 2025-18 received unanimous approval and will allow for an agreement with Olsson for the Prairie Park Phase 4 Project.
Also approved was a resolution which approves the plans, specifications and estimate cost for the City of Wayne Well House and Municipal Well 2025-1 (Well No. 12).
Roger Protzman with JEO talked about the project moving forward and his hope for having bids for the project by April 15. The well will be located one-quarter mile west of City Well No. 9.
The final item discussed at Tuesday's meeting resulted in no action being taken.
Council members determined that more information was needed before selecting an agent for assistance with Southeast Power Pool Market Participant duties.
Mayor Cale Giese said that numbers received recently are "drastically different" than those provided by the consultant the city has been working with.
Council member Matt Eischied said "we need to make sure we are comparing apples to apples and want to make sure we are making the most educated decision."
The Wayne City Council will next meet in regular session on Tuesday, April 1 at 5:30 p.m. in council chambers.
