EDMOND —
Decisions made by the City Council to pay for the $25.5 million Public Safety Center spurred mayoral candidate Richard Prawdzienski to run for office, he said at the Edmond Republican Women’s Club this week.
He will be on the April 2 citywide ballot with incumbent Mayor Charles Lamb. Also on the ballot will be a Ward 4 City Council race between incumbent Nick Massey and Shilpa Abbitt.
The city’s sales tax rate jumped to 3.75 percent in 2012, due to the 2011 half-cent sales tax ballot approval to help fund the Public Safety Center. Voters also gave the city permission to loan itself money out of the $7.2 million Hospital Trust Fund with an improved return of investment on that trust fund.
A five-year sunset provision was set on the ballot for the additional half-cent of sales tax, said Steve Murdock, city attorney. The half-cent sales tax will end March 1, 2017, according to the city.
The 70,000-square-foot Edmond Public Safety Center will be built on a 1-acre site at 100 E. First St. The site of the City of Edmond Administration Building will be demolished in coming weeks.
Laboratory, vehicles, evidence-based storage and other related functions will be at a $3.5 million auxiliary building to be constructed northwest of 33rd Street and Broadway.
“We agreed to pay an extra half penny to build a facility,” Prawdzienski said. “And what the City Council did … they basically said if we have enough money, we pay off the bill, we’ll take that money and use it for capital improvement funds. I want to stop taking money to build capital improvements without a vote of the people.”
Voters in Edmond agreed to a 3/4-cent capital project sales tax in 1996. In 2000 voters affirmed to continue the tax for infrastructure improvements when it was set to expire in 2001.
Prawdzienski said the Capital Improvements and Financing Task Force is deciding how money will be spent without the public’s voice being heard.
The Capital Projects and Financing Task Force is a group of city residents selected by the City Council. They recommend infrastructure priorities to the council, which makes the final decision on expenditures. These projects are funded by the 2000 city sales tax.
“When we do the Public Safety Center in a built environment, we are going to do damage to associated infrastructure around it — streets, parking lots and some other facilities that will be impacted,” Lamb said. “The funds we are collecting for the Public Safety Center project will be used to make those associated repairs and upgrades to fit that project in a built environment.”
Elected candidates take office on the first Monday in May. Mayors are elected for two years. Council members serve four-year terms.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. April 2.
jcoburn@edmondsun.com | 341-2121
Local News
Candidate disagrees with sales tax spending plan
- Local News
-
-
Catholic leaders mark Fortnight for Freedom
Local Catholic leaders are calling for believers to join an interfaith prayer campaign promoting renewed respect for life, traditional marriage and religious liberty.
On the eve of a pending U.S. Supreme Court ruling regarding same sex marriage, and the Aug. 1 deadline for religious organizations to comply with the HHS mandate, which forces employers to pay for contraceptive services despite their religious and moral objections, U.S. bishops called for the second annual Fortnight for Freedom June 21-July 4. -
AAA: Hands-free texting more distracting than talking
If you own a newer car or smartphone you are likely aware that speech-to-text technology exists.
The 2013 Ford Focus ST has technology that will read incoming texts from a connected phone and translate commonly used abbreviations. You also can respond with a set of up to 15 preset outgoing messages. -
Fence agreement nets commission approval for senior housing plan
A good-faith fence line agreement brought the Edmond Planning Commission to recommend approval for the final plat of Mon Abri. This week’s vote was 4-0.
Developer Ron Walters plans to build a group of duplexes and “fiveplexes” for senior citizens. Mon Abri is proposed to be on 87 acres of property on the east side of Broadway, south of Covell Road, said Bob Schiermeyer, city planner. -
Arcadia Lake reopens today
All four public access parks at Arcadia Lake reopened this morning at 6 o’clock. The parks have been closed since June 3 due to flooding from heavy rainfall and the ensuing runoff.
-
Company shoots video footage in downtown Edmond
If you were driving in downtown Edmond mid-day Tuesday you might have seen what looked like a film crew at work on a street corner.
-
Covell/I-35 work on track
The hotel and conference center project on Interstate 35 is very much on track, said John Weeman of Partners In Development told The Edmond Sun on Tuesday. Weeman is in the process of selecting one of three people for a construction partner, he said.
-
2 officers suffer injuries in drug-related pursuit
Two police officers suffered injuries during a call in which suspects fled in a vehicle and possessed meth, police said.
-
City Council approves church remodel
A request by Redeemed Christian Church of God Kingdom Chapel to remodel a facility at 307 E. Danforth for a church was approved recently by the City Council.
“The church wants to rent a 2,302-square-foot space in the office building on the north side of Danforth, east of the convenience store, south of the Timber Ridge Addition,” said Bob Schiermeyer, city planner. “There will be no new construction other than interior remodeling to accommodate the church.
The church does not request changes to the one driveway or sidewalk of the property, Schiermeyer said. No changes will be made to the outside of the two-story brick veneer building. A sprinkler system will not be required. -
Arcadia Lake nears reopening for summer season
Work on reclaiming Arcadia Lake has been ongoing since high water forced its closure earlier this month.
-
Professor: Constitutional heritage can bring sense of belonging to U.S. citizens
Education is fundamental in preparing a citizenry to live under a free constitutional republic, said Kyle Harper, founding director of the Institute for the American Constitutional Heritage at the University of Oklahoma. Harper is also the senior vice provost at OU as well as an associate professor of Classics and Letters.
A sense of identity by belonging to a tradition is an ingredient in being part of a free republic, he said while speaking to the Edmond Republican Women’s Club on Monday. An educated citizen must be aware, alert and intelligent to care about public affairs, he said. - More Local News Headlines
-
James Gandolfini Dies at Age 51
Paula Deen Admits to Using N Word
Rihanna Hits Fan With Microphone
Men's Wearhouse Founder Fired
Obama Renews Call for Nuclear Reductions
Miss Utah Explains Rambling Response
Exclusive: Locklear & Seymour Lock Lips
Miami Heat Wins in Overtime
Raw: Arizona Wildfire Scorches 8 Square Miles
Fists, chairs fly in restaurant brawl
Journalist Michael Hastings Dies in Fiery Hollywood Crash
Hairy Leg Stockings Aim to Deflect Male Attention
Inside Kim Kardashian's Premature Labor
Three Charged for Enslaving Mother and Daughter
Raw: Huge Fire Near Yosemite National Park
Spurs' Popovich has no problem with Spurs' intensity
RAW: NSA Director Says 50 Plots Foiled
Paige Butcher Scorches on Hawaii Beach
Video: worst way to load cargo onto a plane
Never-before-seen footage of '08 Times Square bomber
