(Atlantic, Iowa) – The City of Atlantic’s Personnel and Finance Committee is set to meet 5:30-p.m. Monday, Aug. 30th, in the City Council’s Chambers, at City Hall. During their session, the Committee will review and act on a recommendation to the City Council, with regard to a request to connect the City’s Sanitary Sewer to a commercial property at 60365 Glacier Road. City Administrator John Lund says a new business has signed a lease for the building on the City’s northwest side, that will create 10-to-12 jobs, and are requesting a sanitary sewer hook-up.

Persons with property outside the City Limits must receive approval from the Atlantic City Council before the hook-up can be made. Lund says he will endorse the P&F Committee recommendation because “It is in the best interest of tax payers,” and it would expand the tax base, creating “Downward pressure on property taxes.” Lund says in the future, the City should “Insist on annexation of properties wanting to connect to our utilities.” In this instance, however, the City has already extended utilities far beyond the limits, and there are parcels of land in between “that make annexation impractical, if not unfeasible,” according to Lund.

He added “The City has placed itself in this situation, where we cannot leverage sewer access to compel annexation. We should consider this an instructive lesson. This is not something we should ever do again.”  In other business, the Personnel and Finance Committee will review and act on making a recommendation to the Council, with regard to East 3rd Street Place Land Donations, and with regard to a New Business Incentive Proposal.