HOUGHTON — More residential development could be coming to Houghton.

During his report to the City Council at Wednesday’s meeting, City Manager Eric Waara said he met with Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance Executive Director Jeff Radcliffe and a developer in the due diligence phase of constructing 40 to 60 apartment units on Sharon Avenue. Waara provided the developer with utility and zoning information on the property.

“If that does go forward, it’s allowable by zoning, and we’d be looking at 40 to 60 new units in town, that’s 100-plus people that could find homes in the City of Houghton,” he said.

He also met briefly with the engineers for the prospective buyer of the Hodge building, which now houses the Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce. He expects them to put together a site plan including the Hodge property that would be part of a forthcoming offer to purchase the property from the city.

Waara also updated the council on the process of annexing the prospective Houghton County Justice Center site into the city, which he said could happen over the next few months. The Portage Township board recently approved a resolution backing a permanent annexation by the city. It had previously agreed to a Public Act 425 agreement that would have reversed if the county had not built a jail within nine years.

“It’s a relatively simple process, but it’s a stepped process,” he said. Once it’s clear what steps will be taken, Waara plans to give the council a memo outlining what will happen and when, he said.

In other action:

• The council approved easements for American Transmission Company on some existing power line infrastructure. The previous wording of the easements had not fully covered all of the area. ATC proposed language, which the city attorney revised to be more favorable to the city; ATC assigned off on the changes. The city will receive $8,300, the appraised value of the three sites: near the DPW garage off of Sharon Avenue, along the west side of Vivian Street near the Garnet Street Park and on city-owned property near the electric substation northwest of Cliff Drive. The city turned down incentive payments which would have allowed ATC to use chemicals to inhibit plant growth.

• Waara reported the city had worked with the Western Upper Peninsula Planning and Development Region to create a Geographic Information System map showing taxable values in the city. The downtown and M-26 corridor generate much of the property taxes in Houghton. Waara said he would likely do a presentation on the map at a future meeting.

• Police Chief John Donnelly reported the department had eight misdemeanor arrests, six civil infractions, nine accidents and nine calls for health and safety since the prior meeting. He also had conversations with Police Chief Tami Sleeman to ensure the quality of coverage and mutual aid between the two departments.

• The council heard a public comment about prices on the city’s electric vehicle chargers. Waara said the city has adjusted prices before to make sure the revenues are covering the cost of operating the chargers. He said the city will look to see if prices need to be readjusted back down.

• The council appointed Mary Doskey to the Board of Review. She fills the vacancy left by Sandra Cooney, who resigned.

• The council approved a resolution recognizing Neurofibromatosis Awareness Month in May. The condition causes tumors to form on nerve tissue throughout the nervous system, including the brain and spinal cord.