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Owasso council approves CDBG pedestrian improvements, multiple plats, annexation and rezoning for industrial use
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Summary
The Owasso City Council approved a HUD CDBG application to fund a HAWK pedestrian crossing and sidewalk repairs in Rheola Park and unanimously approved several plats, an annexation of about 187 acres for future trails/parks, and a rezoning that supporters said will retain a local aerospace employer.
The Owasso City Council on March 17 approved a slate of development and infrastructure items, including a federal CDBG application for Rheola Park pedestrian improvements, several plats and replat requests, a 187-acre annexation for future parks/trails, and a rezoning request for an aircraft maintenance and repair use that a company representative said will preserve hundreds of local jobs.
Staff presented Resolution 2026–03 and asked the council to authorize application through the Indian Nations Council of Governments (INCOG) for just over $159,000 in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant funds. City staff (Alexa Beamer) said the grant would fund a signalized pedestrian crossing (a HAWK beacon) at 8th and Main and about 2,300 linear feet of sidewalk maintenance within Rheola Park. Beamer said staff held a required public meeting (March 17 at 3 p.m.) with two attendees who expressed support for the pedestrian beacon. Councilors asked a few mapping and orientation questions before approving the resolution and authorizing staff to execute necessary documents.
On land-use items, the council approved a partial plat vacation for Owasso Market 2 to remove a redundant southern detention easement and allow a concurrent replat; it then approved the Wausau Marketplace Annex replat that subdivides the site into four lots with two access points and a 40-foot mutual access easement. The council also approved a final plat for NeoSource Business Park, a 4.85-acre industrial lot that will be used for support activities related to aircraft maintenance and repair. Planning commission recommendations and staff analyses were cited for each item; planning commissions recommended approval by votes recorded in the staff presentations (most were 5–0; one rezoning recommendation was 4–1).
The council adopted Ordinance 1,246 to annex roughly 187.31 acres north of East 76th Street and north of Mingo Road, a property the city said it purchased in part for the Ranch Creek Trail system; staff cited Oklahoma statutes (Title 11) and the city's land-use plan in recommending approval.
During the rezoning hearing for Ordinance 1,247 (7801 North Owasso Expressway), Dale Roberts, chief operations officer of Sun Bear Aerospace (the parent company of the applicant identified in the staff presentation), said the local facility has grown from roughly 30–40 employees in 2020 to about 185 today and that staffing could reach 230–250 by year end. "We're frankly out of space," Roberts said, adding the company might move operations out of the area if it cannot expand locally. Staff advised that the rezoning to Industrial Light will require a subsequent Specific Use Permit (SUP) for the aircraft-maintenance use. Councilors asked about the SUP process, the possibility of reserving a commercial frontage, and how legacy Commercial General zoning relates to current code.
All the listed items were approved by council during the meeting. The council received a brief city-manager update on Public Works staff moving into a new administrative facility and then adjourned.
Votes at a glance: Resolution 2026–03 (CDBG application) — approved; Owasso Market 2 partial plat vacation — approved; Wausau Marketplace Annex final plat — approved; NeoSource Business Park final plat — approved; Ordinance 1,246 (annexation and rezoning) — adopted; Ordinance 1,247 (rezoning 7801 N Owasso Expressway to IL) — adopted.
