EDMOND —
Mayor Charles Lamb and City Councilman Nick Massey picked up challengers Wednesday in their election efforts, according to the Oklahoma County Election Board. Ward 3 Councilman Darrell Davis did not draw an opponent.
Both mayoral candidate Richard Prawdzienski and Ward 4 candidate Shilpa Abbitt said they are concerned the city is taking the wrong path.
“Having drawn an opponent does not change my commitment to continue to be of service to my community,” Lamb said.
City leadership is going in the right direction, Massey said.
“We’re doing the right things, so we’ll have to have a campaign and let the public decide,” Massey said.
A Devon Energy reservoir engineer, Abbitt said she is excited about her first time to run for any public office.
“I’m not too thrilled about the direction that the City of Edmond is taking, where it has goals to become a destination center to experience art, entertainment, et cetera, and looking to doing more of these public/private enterprise deals,” said Abbitt, a marathon runner.
Too many cities in the U.S. are suffering from public/private initiatives, she added.
Abbitt and her husband, Wyatt, moved to Edmond in 2001 because the community has been a safe, bedroom community to Oklahoma City. Edmond is a great place to raise her two sons, she said.
“I don’t want us to become a big city type,” Abbitt said. “Really, who is going to come to Edmond for a destination experience when you have Oklahoma City?”
Richard Prawdzienski hopes to upset Lamb’s election bid. He lost in an attempt to defeat Republican state Sen. Clark Jolley in November’s general election.
“We’re growing too fast,” Prawdzienski said of Edmond.
Now retired, Prawdzienski served in the U.S. Marine Corps and worked in logistics at Tinker Air Force Base. He also has been active in the Libertarian Party of Oklahoma and is former chairman of the group.
Prawdzienski wants to put a two-year moratorium on modifications to the city’s building codes, specifically zoning changes, he said.
“If we can’t do that, if six families from a neighborhood say they don’t want to go out there and waive the code, I won’t give a vote for a change,” Prawdzienski said of City Council meetings. “Basically, give the vote to the people.”
Six families would out-number the five City Council representatives, he said. Council members are not listening to the concerns of Edmond residents, Prawdzienski said. The recommendations made by homeowners associations should be respected, he added.
“I want to let the people be understood that they have power,” he said.
As with Abbitt, Prawdzienski said he believes in a free market economy. So he wants to stop public/private partnerships.
“I’m against helping companies out by saying I’ll give you freebies,” Prawdzienski said.
Prawdzienski said he opposes the city’s involvement in attracting a $25 million hotel and convention center.
The Covell 35 Development Group plans to build a $25 million Hilton Garden Inn and a 20,000-square-foot conference center on the northwest corner of I-35 and Covell.
In October, the Edmond City Council approved the negotiated agreements 5-0 for developing the hotel and conference center. A unanimous agreement by the council also was reached concerning the development of Summit Sports Complex to be located on the northeast corner of the interchange.
The City Council previously had approved the $2.2 million purchase of 7.13 acres of undeveloped land at the hotel site. The $2.2 million was taken from the city’s Real Property Tax Fund. The Capital Projects and Financing task force voted in favor of reimbursing the $2.2 million to the city’s Real Property Tax Fund from the Capital Projects Tax Fund.
A need for a hotel and conference center has been identified by the council to generate tourism, sales tax and improve quality of life for residents.
Safeguards are in place to protect the city’s land investment, said attorney Leslie Batchelor, representing the city in the projects. It is a legal requirement that the public not give anything away to private investment, she said.
The hotel costs are solely the responsibility of the developer, Batchelor said.
In April the city released details of the memorandum of understanding in regard to the $2.2 million investment in which the city will charge $1 dollar a year in leasing the property, Lamb said. The business partners would have a 15-year buy-back option to purchase the land.
“We don’t need to step in and offer hotel privileges for them to build something,” Prawdzienski said. “I’m against the biking trail (from I-35 to Arcadia Lake). I don’t want to say I’m against everything. I’m for a free market economy.”
Primary elections for mayor and City Council are March 5 followed by a general election April 2. Elected candidates take office on the first Monday in May, said Steve Murdock, city attorney. Mayors are elected for two years. Council members serve four-year terms.
Local News
Mayor, councilman draw opponents
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EF-5 tornado called 'worst in history'
President Barack Obama pledged the federal government’s full support for disaster relief in what is being called one of the most devastating tornadoes in history. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has deployed a team to the state.
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Edmond detective describes tornado devastation
Like other Oklahomans, Edmond Police Detective Marion Cain was keeping an eye on the weather Monday.
The storm, which produced the tornado began at 2:45 p.m., about 4.4 miles west of Newcastle and its 20-mile long path went through Newcastle, Moore and south Oklahoma City. About 10 minutes after it formed, it was already causing EF4 damage. Maximum winds of the tornado, upgraded to an EF5, were 200-210 mph, according to information released at 2:50 p.m. Tuesday by the National Weather Service. Its estimated maximum width was 1.3 miles. -
UPDATE: How to donate, find drop-off locations for relief supplies
Below is a listing of where donations may be taken in the Edmond area to help the Moore/Oklahoma tornado victims:
• The Edmond Sun is serving as a drop-off location for the downtown Edmond area. Supplies only may be dropped off at 123 S. Broadway and residents may use the backdoor to enter the building. Parking is available behind the building at the Festival Market Place. From 5-10 p.m. donations may be taken to Café Evoke, 103 S. Broadway.
• Edmond North High School is serving as a drop-off location for bottled water through today
• Memorial High School is serving as a drop-off location for food through today.
• Santa Fe High School is serving as a drop-off location for supplies such as work gloves, tools, etc. through today. -
Edmond high schools aid Moore, OKC tornado victims
Sometimes good things come from texting.
Monday afternoon, Sydney Richardson, who will be Santa Fe’s student body president next year, was driving home and it was raining. Once home, she talked to her mother, who told her about the tornado in Moore. Then she began seeing the damage on TV.
“It was devastating,” Richardson said. “We watched it all night long. I just felt like we needed to do something immediately.” -
City schedules debris collection for May 28
The City of Edmond’s Field Services Division of Public Works will be collecting storm-related debris from the May 19 tornado in accordance with the City of Edmond’s Emergency Operation Plan’s Level Two Response.
Affected areas where debris pick up will occur include in the area beginning one-half mile south of 15th Street to 33rd Street and from Boulevard Avenue east to I-35; and the Territories and Timberlake additions. Please see the map for clarification. Pick up is available for residential homes located within the designated boundaries.
Tree debris must be cut into no more than 6-foot sections and must be placed by the curb of the residence no later than 8 a.m. May 28. Crews will begin collection on Tuesday and continue until they have covered the area. -
Storm shelter inquiries up; customers take a number
After the horrific tornado set down in Moore Monday afternoon, storm shelter inquiries hit new highs.
Tuesday Ashley Cunningham, office manager for Red Dirt Septic on Waterloo Road in Edmond, and Mark Webb, owner of the Armor Vault Tornado Shelter in Oklahoma City, said their phones have been ringing consistently starting Monday afternoon. -
Insurers respond to Moore disaster
Insurers, like other agencies related to the Moore tornado disaster, are assessing the damage.
The Oklahoma Insurance Department has made an emergency declaration, allowing out-of-state adjusters to work storm damaged areas, said agency spokeswoman Calley Herth. It’s too soon to have tabulated damage estimates, Herth said.
“We are working hard to collect any and all numbers, but it’s just too soon at this moment,” she said. -
AG issues charity fraud and schemes alert
Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt Tuesday issued a warning for Oklahomans and donors around the country to beware of charity fraud and scams following the severe storms in Oklahoma.
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VIDEO: Pres. Obama's remarks on the Okla. tornado
President Obama speaks on Monday's deadly Okla. tornado.
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Photos: Aftermath of massive tornado in Moore
Storm victims were pulled from the rubble and residents began surveying the damage late Monday and early Tuesday in the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, where a powerful tornado destroyed entire neighborhoods and left dozens dead.
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