The Ottumwa City Council Meeting is sponsored by Jakki and Fonzi with Cars & cash located on N. Madison in Ottumwa give them alike on Facebook.
The Ottumwa City Council meeting on Tuesday, November 3, opened with an invocation delivered by former City Council member Matt Dalbey, a member of The Satanic Temple of Iowa.
Dalbey previously delivered a Satanic prayer during the October 6 City Council meeting, sparking widespread controversy locally and nationally.
During Tuesday night’s invocation, a gentleman in the audience stood up and began reciting the Lord’s Prayer loudly. The individual was asked to leave the chambers. When he refused, he was escorted out of the meeting by the Ottumwa Police Department.
Dalbey’s invocation focused on religious liberty, freedom of expression, and the right of individuals to hold differing beliefs.
The invocation was as follows:
“I stand before you as a member of The Satanic Temple. I stand before you as a resident of Ottumwa, as an Iowa native, and as an American. I stand before you as an advocate for religious liberty, free expression, and pluralism.
If it should be that we agree on a few things, let us agree that we are, each and all, free to hold differing convictions, and none among us may claim the authority to constrain freedom of thought, the fundamental right to develop, to hold, and to express on equal terms our deeply held beliefs.
For even should one’s beliefs be formulated in error, correction cannot come from coercion. Force can overcome neither heart nor mind, and far greater an evil than a misguided inquirer is the tyranny of forced conformity and thoughtless acceptance of injustice.
In a time where sectarian divides are increasingly invited to make themselves known in public forums, causing needless strife in diverse communities, let us celebrate our shared respect for individual dignity, personal sovereignty, and a unified, uncompromising rejection of tyrannical authority.
If we agree on no other things, let us agree that each is their own master of their fate, and whatever ultimate power we claim to serve, let us not invest in ourselves the power to take that freedom from another.
Hail Ottumwa. Hail Iowa. Hail the United States of America. Hail Satan.”
Following the invocation, Cara Galloway suggested moving the invocation to a moment of silence rather than having verbal prayers delivered during council meetings.
Ben Foote stated that the proposal would need to be brought back before the City Council at another meeting for further discussion and consideration. Any proposed revisions to the invocation process would need to be presented to the council for approval.
First off is the public hearing:
The Ottumwa City Council has approved the final consideration of Ordinance No. 3261-2026, updating regulations for dumpsters and waste receptacles located in downtown areas and on city-owned property.
The changes are intended to address ongoing concerns about unsightly dumpster areas and improve the appearance and cleanliness of downtown Ottumwa.
The revised ordinance removes language limiting dumpster placement to municipal parking lots, allowing businesses to use other city rights-of-way for waste receptacles. It also requires dumpsters, receptacles and their enclosures to remain properly closed and free of obstructions to help prevent trash from blowing into nearby streets and alleys.
The City will provide signage for enclosures that includes contact information for the permitting process. The ordinance also identifies existing and potential future enclosure locations within city-owned parking lots.
Annual permit fees remain under discussion, with proposed amounts of $60 and $100 to be addressed through a separate resolution.
The ordinance received final approval from the City Council and will take effect following passage, adoption, approval and publication as required by law.
Next Mikael Lee (Finance Department)
The Ottumwa City Council has approved the first consideration of Ordinance No. 3262-2026, which would amend the city’s sewer rate ordinance by removing the per-dwelling-unit fee provision.
During the October 20 council meeting, a financial analysis showed the city could continue funding sewer operations and future capital improvements through cash reserves and limited bonding without the additional per-dwelling-unit charge.
City officials determined the proposed charging method was not desirable. The amendment removes the existing language regarding the fee and replaces it with the word “Reserved.”
Moving on to Resolutions:
Christina Reinhard ( City Clerk)
The Ottumwa City Council has approved Resolution No. 211-2026, establishing updated council meeting procedures and changes to the agenda format.
Under the resolution, regular council meetings will continue to be held on the first and third Tuesdays of each month at 5:30 p.m. Special meetings, whenever possible, will be scheduled for the second or fourth Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
Public comments will remain limited to three minutes unless the City Council approves additional time.
The resolution also changes the order of agenda approvals, allowing council members to approve the meeting agenda first, followed by the consent agenda items.
The new agenda format will take effect January 1, 2027. The current format will remain in place for the remainder of 2026.
Adoption of Resolution No. 211-2026 rescinds Resolution No. 20-2021, originally adopted in January 2021.
Philip Burgmeier (Engineering_Department)
The Ottumwa City Council has approved Resolution No. 4215-2026, authorizing the purchase of temporary and permanent easements on Morrell Drive.
The easements are needed to separate a stormwater intake from the sanitary sewer system. The temporary easement will provide additional workspace during construction, while the permanent sewer easement will allow for future maintenance and upkeep of the utility infrastructure.
The total cost of the easements is $1,450. The permanent sewer easement will be officially recorded with the Wapello County Recorder’s Office.
