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OTTUMWA, IOWA -- The Ottumwa City Council was in session Tuesday evening, and a few of their agenda items focused around the proposed Kohl’s shopping center near the intersection of Wildwood Drive and U.S. Highway 34.

For the past few months, the council has approved several resolutions to turn the plot of land from agricultural to commercial. The process has not been easy. The city wants to give Kohl’s a $2 million incentive to come to Ottumwa. That incentive would be paid back over a 20 year period. Not everyone in the community is on-board with the incentive, including the Wapello County Board of Supervisors.

Recently, the board sent a letter to the city disapproving of the incentive, from the supervisor’s point of view, Kohl’s is getting a major tax break, while other businesses that have been here in Ottumwa for some time did not get that type of incentive to locate here.

Ottumwa City Council Member Brian Morgan seems to be citing with the supervisors on one issue, the $2 million incentive.

“I just think we have a lot of businesses in town and I think competition is great, but I think we didn't do this for a lot of other businesses in town and that is what worries me with a couple of businesses in particular, with the possibility of closure and those jobs created are then lost,” said Morgan.

The council did approve the three resolutions to move forward with the development, however, Council Member Morgan did vote no due to the $2 million issue. 

Council Member Keith Caviness and Mayor Dale Uehling did address those gathered at the meeting regarding this topic.

Council Member Keith Caviness sees this as an investment in Ottumwa and the community.  He feels that the $2 million as an investment, being that Kohl’s is going to have to pay the money back and he feels it will attract more businesses to the community.

Mayor Dale Uehling stated that he read an article in the Des Moines Register that said another Kohl’s development in Fort Dodge was hiring 150 employees; that development is very similar to the one here in Ottumwa.