Owasso council approves two easement closures, two annexations and several consent items

The Owasso City Council on an evening meeting approved two ordinances to close portions of utility and stormwater easements in the Smith Farm Village development and adopted two separate annexation-and-rezoning ordinances to bring about 57 acres into the city for park and residential use.

Staff told the council the easement closures are technical adjustments following lot-line changes in the Smith Farm Village final plat and that replacement easements will be recorded to match the revised lot lines. Staff recommended approval of the annexations after concluding the requests met the relevant statutory and local-code requirements.

Why it matters: closing and re-establishing easements and annexing land affect where utilities and drainage are located and how future development and city services will be planned. The council’s votes formally clear title or zoning barriers so the developer and the city can proceed with engineering and planning work.

Ordinances and votes - Ordinance 12-31: Approved closure of two 10-foot general utility easements described for Lots 1 and 2 in Block 8 of Smith Farm Village and related lot adjustments. Staff recommended adoption after evaluating the requests against the city’s subdivision regulations. The motion to adopt carried; members recorded as voting yes included Councilor Loving, Councilor Walter and Mayor Fouge (vote recorded in the transcript as “Yes” by those members). Staff advised the applicant to pursue vacation of the easements in district court to remove them from the official records.

- Ordinance 12-32: Approved closure of 5,783 square feet of a 25-foot storm drainage easement within Lots 1 and 2 of Block 8, Smith Farm Village. Staff recommended adoption and the council voted to approve; members recorded as voting yes included Councilor Walter, Councilor Levy and Councilor Frege (as recorded in the meeting transcript).

- Ordinance 12-33 (OA25-01 / OZ25-02): Approved annexation of about 20 acres west of North 108th East Avenue (adjacent to the Owasso Sports Park south parking lot) and concurrent rezoning to Public Facilities (PF). Staff said the city purchased the property earlier in the year and plans to incorporate it into the existing sports park. Planning Commission recommended approval. The council voted to approve the ordinance.

- Ordinance 12-34 (OA25-02 / OZ25-03): Approved annexation of approximately 37.6 acres north of East 706th Street North and west of North Memorial Drive (the project referenced as “Owasso Trails”) with concurrent rezoning to RS-2 (residential single-family, medium density). Staff said the property must be platted before any building permits are issued and identified the current water and sewer providers. Planning Commission recommended approval. The council voted to approve the ordinance.

Other procedural items - Consent agenda (Item 7) was approved by voice vote. - Council announced Item 18 had been removed from the agenda before discussion began.

What staff said: City planners told the council they had notified franchise holders and utility companies about the Smith Farm Village easement closures and had heard no objections; they said the closures meet the legal criteria in the city subdivision regulations. For the annexations staff referenced Oklahoma Statutes (Title 11, chapter 1, article 21) and the city zoning code during their legal evaluation and recommended approval.

Next steps: For the easement closures, staff advised the applicant to file for vacation of the easements in district court to remove them from the record and to record replacement easements aligning with revised lot lines. For the annexations, staff said platted lots and any required engineering will be completed before building permits are issued.