By Sam Parsons

The Oskaloosa city council held a regular meeting on Monday night and conducted the first readings of three different ordinances. The first ordinance designates 3 different downtown areas, including “The Alley,” lying west of the city square and south of Smokey Row, “Trolley Place,” lying west of Tasos’ restaurant, and the Oskaloosa Skate Park, as City Park Areas. City staff said that the purpose of the designation was to institute closing times for these areas in response to concerns raised by residents about “after-hours use of and activities at” these areas. The second ordinance adopts the latest edition of the National Electrical Code. The third ordinance adds a “no parking zone” to 1st Avenue West on the north side from South D Street to the railroad tracks 600 feet west of South D Street. All first readings were passed on 6-0 votes by the council.

The council also set the date for a public hearing on plans and specifications and authorizing the advertisement of bids for the Burlington Road reconstruction project for June 6.

And in other business, the council approved a budget adjustment for the Oskaloosa Police Department to fill two Sergeant positions that have been vacant since 2021 and 2024, respectively. The positions have been a part of the department’s organizational structure since 2021, but during the development of the FY27 budget, they were budgeted at patrol officer salary levels rather than Sergeant salary levels. City staff said that the department is now projecting full staffing during the upcoming fiscal year.

The next regular meeting for the Oskaloosa city council is scheduled for June 1.