I am humbled and honored to be sworn in tonight for a third term.
Reply
Dear Friends and Neighbors:
Norman is a special place,which has been rated first in the state and 40th in the country of best places to live! I'm proud of that fact, and I believe that our community's unique balance between that of a larger, progressive city and a quiet University town is the key to our exceptional quality of life.
Public service on City Council though is not simply a matter of solving bigger issues for the larger community. First and foremost, it's about representing the interests of individual residents, like you, and working to resolve the many smaller, but equally important problems affecting your families, homes and neighborhoods.
Norman is a wonderful city because of diverse people and interests and points of view. If we wish to protect and enhance the character and values that make Norman such a great place to live, it's important that we work cooperatively together as a community of neighbors, and that our municipal government works for all of us.
I promise to continue to represent your interests, and keep working to ensure that City Hall acts in the best interest of all of the citizens of Norman and not just a select few. In order to do that I have changed this website to be interactive. I want to hear your ideas as well as to keep you informed. I will periodically send out updates on important issues to help keep you informed. Please sign up on the update page.
Sincerely, Tom
Latest News:
NORMAN — Business and Community Affairs to consider board appointments
The Norman City Council will say goodbye this week to council members Carol Dillingham, Ward 4, and Dan Quinn, Ward 8, while welcoming newcomers Greg Jungman and Chad Williams. The annual swearing in ceremonial meeting starts 6 p.m. Tuesday, half an hour earlier than usual city council meetings.
As the city offers appreciation for the council members’ years of dedicated service, it also will administer oaths of office to re-elected members Tom Kovach, Ward 2, and James Griffith, Ward 6, and to new members Jungman, Ward 4, and Williams, Ward 8.
The council also will elect a mayor pro tem and representatives to the Association of Central Oklahoma Governments Board of Directors, a council member to serve on the board of trustees for the city’s Norman Retirement System, and a council member to serve as a representative and ex-officio member of the Norman Convention and Visitors Bureau Board of Directors.
Prior to the special council meeting, Norman’s city volunteers will be welcomed with an appreciation reception at 5 p.m. at city hall.
Economic Development Advisory Board: Of particular interest this week will be the Business and Community Affairs Committee meeting 9 a.m. Thursday. According to the agenda, discussion will revolve around the creation of a Norman Economic Development Advisory Board.
After lengthy debates regarding the creation of a Norman Economic Development Authority, it was decided that city council members would serve as trustees. The city council approved the NEDA on June 12, with plans to create an advisory committee of financial professionals.
“This is the starting point. We all agreed that an advisory board is appropriate and makes a lot of sense,” Council member Hal Ezzell said. “Our starting point is what was pulled out from the last agreement (during NEDA discussions), and we’ll go from there. That discussion is going to start on Thursday.”
Assistant City Attorney Kathryn Walker will make a presentation to the Business and Community Affairs Committee, including a draft ordinance to create the Norman Economic Development Advisory Board. Positions would be appointed.
A five-member board is proposed, with one member to be nominated by the executive committee of the Norman Chamber of Commerce, one nominated by the Board of Directors of the Norman Economic Development Coalition and three nominated by the mayor and confirmed by the city council.
Council member Tom Kovach said he would like to see a seven-member advisory board. Kovach believes all of the seats should come from city council appointments.
“The chamber and NEDC should not get to pick who is on that board,” Kovach said. “What we need is people with the right credentials.”
How the advisory board will function in conjunction with NEDA will be adjusted based on the council’s input.
“This economic advisory board’s primary function is to give us a good technical evaluation of the financial feasibility of a proposed project. It’s (the) council’s job to decide if it’s the right kind of project for Norman,” Kovach said. “NEDA should determine first if a project is desirable before a project goes to the committee for evaluation.”
In the draft proposal, all five members of the advisory board would be required to have experience in law, finance, accounting or banking.
“I have serious questions about the proposed makeup of the board under this proposal,” Mayor Cindy Rosenthal said. “It’s not sufficiently broad enough to protect the public interest.”
Rosenthal said she thinks the advisory board should include more members. Also, she has concerns about how it would function because of the increased ability of economic committees to hold closed-door executive sessions.
Under the proposal, the advisory board would make recommendations to the city council regarding:
· Proposed economic development policies and programs
· Requests for city-funded incentives for private businesses as proposed by the Norman Economic Development Coalition
· Development of strategies and plans for promoting economic development in Norman.
The committee would also:
· Investigate and report on economic development issues as assigned by the council
· Assist in identifying assets, resources and incentives appropriate for furthering economic development in the city.
Joy Hampton 366-3539 jhampton@ normantranscript.com
Sitel announced 361 employees will lose their jobs in Norman. I hope we as a community will work together to help them in their transition.
Today there are several Federal, State County and one Local elections. Please take the time to vote and ask your friends to take the time to vote,as well. Your call can make a difference in a race and the way your government is run. Just think of all those elections where one vote made the difference.
This has been withdrawn buy the applicant
Central Oklahoma Transportation Planning Program to Undergo Review
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) have scheduled a public listening session as part of an evaluation of the region’s transportation planning activities over the past four years. The session will take place on Monday, June 25, from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., at Metro Technology Center, Room F, 1900 Springlake Drive, in Oklahoma City.
The Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG), which serves as the region’s Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), coordinates transportation planning efforts in the greater Oklahoma City region, which encompasses all of Oklahoma and Cleveland Counties and portions of Canadian, Grady, Logan and McClain Counties.
The listening session is part of a certification review that takes place every four years to ensure that the MPO complies with federal standards and policies. The public is encouraged to attend. Those attending who wish to utilize public transportation should consider METRO Transit’s Route 22. Citizens should notify ACOG at 405-234-2264 (TDD/TTY Call 7-1-1 Statewide), if accommodations pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act are needed.
As the MPO for Central Oklahoma, ACOG is responsible for long and short-range transportation planning from a multi-modal approach, incorporating street and highway improvements, transit options, goods movement, bicycle and pedestrian travel and new technologies to enhance transportation safety and security.
FHWA is also accepting written comments. Comments may be sent to Isaac Akem, FHWA, 5801 N. Robinson, Suite 300, Oklahoma City, OK 73118 through August 24, 2012.
What are your thoughts about the idea of taking the white house on the north-side of Main St at Wylie and converting it to a private school for 150 to 250 students?
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) have scheduled a public listening session as part of an evaluation of the region’s transportation planning activities over the past four years. The session will take place on Monday, June 25, from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., at Metro Technology Center, Room F, 1900 Springlake Drive, in Oklahoma City.
The Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG), which serves as the region’s Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), coordinates transportation planning efforts in the greater Oklahoma City region, which encompasses all of Oklahoma and Cleveland Counties and portions of Canadian, Grady, Logan and McClain Counties.
The listening session is part of a certification review that takes place every four years to ensure that the MPO complies with federal standards and policies. The public is encouraged to attend. Those attending who wish to utilize public transportation should consider METRO Transit’s Route 22. Citizens should notify ACOG at 405-234-2264 (TDD/TTY Call 7-1-1 Statewide), if accommodations pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act are needed.
As the MPO for Central Oklahoma, ACOG is responsible for long and short-range transportation planning from a multi-modal approach, incorporating street and highway improvements, transit options, goods movement, bicycle and pedestrian travel and new technologies to enhance transportation safety and security.
FHWA is also accepting written comments. Comments may be sent to Isaac Akem, FHWA, 5801 N. Robinson, Suite 300, Oklahoma City, OK 73118 through August 24, 2012.
The Norman Economic Development Authority was created, last Tuesday, after nine months of public meetings, and five weeks of intense public input. I did received; two petitions (one for and one against with over 330 Norman residents signing), over 300 emails and messages and several dozen phone calls. Additionally, I did listen to public comments and questions in a four and half hour meeting exclusively about the Trust. Most people find this to more than a reasonable amount of time, input and listening.
The first emails which came to me were concerned about how this had been brought out of nowhere, drafted by the Chamber and forced on the agenda as a surprise. The Shadow Government rumors were running rampant. The fact was this was first discussed in August of 2010 as a Council priority, but it was not until Mayor Rosenthal created the Business and Community Affairs Committee in July of 2011, that detailed public discussion started. There was Council Conference on NEDA at the end of March 2012 and the normally the next step would have been to put it on the Agenda for the next Council meeting in April. But the Council asked for a public hearing. A month went by and it had not been scheduled nor or was it on any timeline to be scheduled. So the Rule of Three was use to express the will of the majority of Council by requesting NEDA be put on the Agenda for public discussion. The May 8th meeting would have been that discussion.
In order to address concerns that this was not enough time five weeks were added to give more than the normal amount of time for public scrutiny and input. A public meeting was held as well a follow up committee meeting to make any tweaks to address any issues.
The Second concern was who controlled the NEDA. An expert on trusts, recommend by Mayor Rosenthal, had been asked to speak to the committee. He urged that: Council not be the trustees so that discussion about projects be on a non-political basis. The Accountability would come from a required 2/3 or ¾ vote of Council to fund any project, and trustees would be subject to the Conflict of Interest rules. Transparency would come from requirements to follow the Open Records and Open Meeting Act.
This was insufficient to satisfy the concerns of the some in the public, who had been told NEDA was a shadow government for special interests. So we reinstated Council as the Trustees and the professionals would be used only to advise Council on the viability of proposed projects. That too was insufficient to a few who did not want the Board in the Trust. So we removed the Board from the Trust with the intent of creating a citizen board of professionals to do the same function.
The Mayor asked why we need to do this at all if we had a Trust that already was the same. So we asked our independent counsel to look into that. They advised us it would be best to just create a new trust, to keep the perception of the use clear to all. The Duplication would cost no money or extra time so we choose to follow their legal guidance.
After all the effort to accommodate questions and concerns, we were left with those that are philosophically opposed to economic development, those that supported it, and a few that asked why we need it.
For the latter, the answer was to attract and retain quality jobs for Norman as had been done with Hitachi. It would be used as a financing tool only and not intended for retail. For the former, I respect that point of view but I feel if proper safeguards are in place and with proper vetting, the community can benefit. The vast majority of the people I have been in contact with over the last few years are concerned about quality jobs in Norman.
Those who opposed it, have an absolute right to their opinion. I value and welcome honest and respectful debate. Honest debate, in my mind includes open mindedness for all parties. Once all the arguments have been heard it is time to decide. For most of Norman the arguments had been sufficiently presented for them to formulate an opinion.
I understand emotions run high when you are trying to win an argument. People were frustrated by the lack of debate for both Council and the public, on the night of the vote. The unfortunate consequence of those who made a reasoned debate into a political one created a situation of an imperfect solution to a problem of debating for the sake of delay with the hope of postponement. I felt the public at large deserved an up or down vote to end what had become a divisive debate. This silenced no voices. They were all heard, many of them several times; they spoke for the next hour in Miscellaneous Discussion. They continue to be heard in their emails and letters. They will be heard when and if we have an actual project, and when we form the committee. All this will be welcomed. For four years I have worked hard to encourage and enable participation by the public and I did so, on this issue, well beyond what the average citizen in Norman would expect. I had over 20 emails from one couple who are not even my constituents, but that was not enough for them. They wanted live blogging despite the fact we provide live streaming video of meetings ( which I fought hard to make sure the city provided). In the end the very reason Robert’s Rules have a motion to move the previous question is in recognition that at some point it is time to end debate that has become circular and to vote.
June 7, 2012
Norman Police Press Release: NORMAN POLICE IMPLEMENT FREE ALERT SERVICE
Effective immediately, the City of Norman Police Department is offering a new, free service that will alert residents of emergencies, advisories, or community events via test message or email. The service, created by Nixle, LLC, delivers trustworthy and important public safety information, and Nixle has secured a partnership with Nlets (the International Justice and Public Safety Network), allowing local police departments nationwide to send immediate alerts and advisories free of charge.
Norman Chief of Police, Keith Humphrey believes in the value of this product. He said, “Nixle is an excellent resource that will allow our department to continue our proactive initiatives with the community.”
Sign up and register, and then share this new service with friends and neighbors. We are very excited to have you experience it for yourself and believe that this service will move the department toward our goal of making Norman the safest city in America. You may register by texting 888777 or through the web site, www.Nixle.com.