Publisher’s note: This story was updated at 2:36 p.m. on March 7 to include additional information on the commissioners present in Reunion.
The Cleveland County Board of Commissioners’ Recreational Facility Authority Authority unanimously approved an economic development agreement for the University North Park entertainment district at a special meeting on Friday.
The discussion and examination of the economic agreement were the only element of activity on the agenda. The meeting lasted for about three minutes.
Jacob MchughesCountry Commissioner of Cleveland for District 2, was president of the meeting and Rod ClevelandThe Cleveland County Commissioner for District 1 will be vice-president. The members of the authority present included the district commissioner 3 of the County Cleveland Rusty Grissom, The deputy sports director of or Larry Naifeh and Steve McDaniels.
The commissioners did not talk about the entertainment district during approval and left the meeting without answering questions.
The continuation 200 of the Cleveland County justice palace has been completed, including the member of the Council 8 Scott Dixon and Norman Chamber of Commerce President Scott Martin. Members of Oklahomans for responsible economic development were present, including Rob Norman, lawyer for Play and Falcone; Pamela Post, one of the three respondents, registered the manifestation of the Petition of Orel; Cynthia Rogers, professor of economics of or; and Russell Rice, co -owner of Care-A-Vans.
According to Storme Jones, director of communications at Cleveland County, the Board of Directors had to sign the agreement before March 15 to comply with one of the planning periods of the plan described in the initial agreement Approved by the Norman municipal council in September.
“The agreement on which they voted today presents a calendar and types of deadlines that must be respected,” said Jones. “The commissioners take their responsibility for developing the tax base, to improve the quality of life of people here, and that is certainly what they see this entertainment district.”
Jones said legal obstacles would prevent the agreement from moving forward.
“Following the decision of judge Virgin, this city agreement is still intact, and these deadlines are still described in this agreement,” said Jones. “If at the bottom of the road, something had to stop this, we would obviously take a catch on any agreement or any action. Currently, there is no order of the court, there is no injunction, nothing stops this, which means that we still have to meet the time limits of the contract. »»
On February 25, Cleveland County Judge Jeff Virgin He nailed a public ballot. The members of Old, the non -profit organization that organized the petition movement, said they were planning to appeal the decision to the Supreme Oklahoma Court.
Paul Arcaroli, founding member of Ored, said that Orel currently laid a dissertation and asks that he be seen by the Supreme Court of Oklahoma.
“You really want more experienced eyes,” said Arcaroli. “The Supreme Court sees problems much more frequently than an individual judge in Norman.”
Arcaroli described the decision of the board of directors “rubber stamp” and said that the agreement reflected its disapproval of the committees of three people. He said that the lack of public comments from the council and recognition of the 11,602 petition signatures gathered was unhappy, the addition of the board of directors could have awaited the call process to end.
“When you have a commission or a panel with a particular perspective, you will get this result,” said Arcaroli. “This is intrinsically anti-democratic and they have proven it today. … It’s time to change. Two of these guys are ready to re -elect in 2026, who knows? »»
Background
Around 1 a.m. on September 18, the Norman municipal council approved the University North Park Entertainment 5-4 district 5-4. During the meeting, more than 70 residents expressed support and opposition to the district and its financing by tax, or tif, the model.
On September 20, three Norman residents filed a petition To transform the district into a public vote. Petitioners collected 11,602 signatures over 30 daysexceeding the 6,098 required by law. Of the 11,602 submissive, 10,698 signatures were certified by the municipal clerk Brenda Hall.
On November 19, David Nimmo, former president and chief executive Chickasaw nation industries; Kyle Allison, director of Allison’s Fun inc.; Vernon McKown, CEO and co-founder of Ideal Homes & Quartiers; And Dan QuinnThe former member of the district of the district 8 and real estate agent for Dillard Cies, filed the challenge of opposing the petition.
According to the opinion of 119 pages, the demonstration challenged most of the petition and argued that it did not comply with a Oklahoma status This requires a referendum petition to summarize the nature of the referendum vote proposed in a way that can be understood by those who do not practice the law.
“Rather than trying to distill the legal effects of the order in a way that the ordinary person could understand, the language of most of the supporters, below, tries rather to follow the highly technical terms and often complicated by the order itself,” said the opinion.
On February 25, Virgin have found the invalid referendum petition And judged that it had to be struck by the ballot of a public vote.
Arcaroli, one of the three residents who deposited the petition on behalf of Orel, said that the petitioners were planning to appeal the decision.
“It is necessary to appeal because it is the legal means to obtain our day in court, so to speak. The initial hearing is only part of the process, but the right of appeal is just as important, “said Arcaroli. “I always think we have done the right thing, and I think we will have a good chance of calling on.”
The public vote was initially planned for the municipal elections of February 11, but was delayed due to the legal opinion.
This story was published by Ismael Lele, Ana Barboza and Anusha Fathepure.