Upon request of any person, a street, alley or other public way (hereinafter called public way) located within the city may be vacated and thereafter closed by action of the mayor and board of aldermen, adopted in accordance with the following requirements:

(1) Upon request to vacate a public way, the city engineer shall place said request on the agenda of the mayor and board of aldermen for a regularly scheduled meeting held not earlier than six (6) weeks from receipt of said request. Thereafter, the city engineer shall:

(a) Provide the mayor and board of aldermen with his written recommendation;

(b) Request recommendations from the city planning commission, the county planning commission (if the public way proposed for vacation extends into the county), the state highway administration (if the public way proposed for vacation intersects a state highway), and the city historic district commission (if the public way proposed for vacation is located partially or wholly within the historic district). Request for recommendations shall be made not later than five (5) weeks prior to the meeting of the mayor and board of aldermen. If no recommendations are received, said agency shall be deemed to have no comment;

(c) Post a sign or signs at intervals of not less than three hundred (300) feet along the public way proposed for vacation, said signs to give notice of the proposed action and the date, time and place of the hearing before the mayor and board of aldermen; and

(d) Place a notice in a newspaper of daily general circulation in the city, to appear at least once each week for a period not less than four (4) weeks prior to the hearing before the mayor and board of aldermen, said notice to contain a fair summary of the action requested and stating the date, time and place for the hearing before the mayor and board of aldermen.

(2) Upon reviewing said recommendations and after testimony of all interested persons, the mayor and board of aldermen may thereafter vacate and close said public way.

(3) The cost of publication and posting shall be paid by the party requesting vacation. (Ord. No. G-77-7, § 1, 9-1-77)