Another pair off the books

The City of Everly's real estate portfolio shrunk once again Monday night.

The council accepted two bids of $1,000 apiece from Stephanie and Derrick Nestvold for a pair of lots located by the railroad tracks. Barring any hiccups, the Nestvolds will take ownership in March once the required notice is published and a public hearing is held.

The lots sit at the intersection of East Fourth Street and Rumsey Street. The Nestvolds were the only bidders on the properties.

The minimum bid for each lot sold Monday was $1,000. They were the fifth and sixth parcels of land sold by the city in the past four months, as the council in September sold four lots in the Peterson Heights Addition totaling $9,252.

The city is also planning to sell two more lots located on North Adams Street; however, issues with the surveyor hired to do the work has delayed progress for several months. Mayor Ron Thompson on Monday suggested the city move forward with a different surveyor.

The recent property sales were a priority for the council last year, as members wished to get certain lots off the city's books and back onto the tax rolls.

In other business, the council voted unanimously to approve a 3 percent raise for city employees this year. Annual appointments and committee assignments were also rubberstamped: Mayor Pro-tem, Tara Patrick; City Finance Committee, Patrick and Denise Cook; Physical Operations Committee, Tracey Grigg-Schuver and Jeff Wiemann; Overview Committee, Grigg-Schuver and Wiemann; City Development and Land Usage Committee, Patrick and Wiemann; Fire Board, Cook and Wiemann; City Attorney, Dennis Cmelik; Cemetery Board, Tatum Geerdes; ADA, Geerdes; and Zoning Compliance Permit, Patrick.