Queen Kathy - again?? JUST SAY NO!!!!

[LocalGirl]

If this megalomaniac has any chance at being elected it really is time to blow this town!
One of her volunteers knocked at my door this a.m.  I politely told her yeah, when hell freezes over. She thanked me for not slamming the door in her face like my neighbor did. (smart neighbor)

I'm voting for Christiansen - may not agree with him on everything but at least he's a true public servant - and a smart guy.

Get smart Tulsa - don't just vote for the most familiar name.

[Hoss]

If this megalomaniac has any chance at being elected it really is time to blow this town!
One of her volunteers knocked at my door this a.m.  I politely told her yeah, when hell freezes over. She thanked me for not slamming the door in her face like my neighbor did. (smart neighbor)

I'm voting for Christiansen - may not agree with him on everything but at least he's a true public servant - and a smart guy.

Get smart Tulsa - don't just vote for the most familiar name.

Hah!  Christiansen a nice guy?  You've obviously not dealt with him at a business level like many I know have. He also snubbed me at the BOK Center grand opening when I asked him a question. I politely called him a D-bag.

I'll keep my options open, but right now I'd vote for Taylor over anyone in the current field.

[TheArtist]

  Kathy made a lot of people really angry and a lot of people really like her.   The reason... she actually got things done.  Any time you do something or make any changes in this town you will make people angry.  You, and even I, may not like her methods, but I liked that she got things done.  Doing nothing is the easiest way to not ruffle feathers, too much. The main thing I wanted this last administration to do was implement the new Comprehensive Plan everyone worked so long and hard for and paid so much money and time to get started.  Bartlett hasn't pushed it's implementation, quite the contrary he seems to have intentionally stalled it and pushed it off to the side hoping it will wither and die.  And has instead pushed ideas that are completely contrary to what people indicated they wanted with the new comprehensive plan (like the completion of the Gilcrease Expressway).  His priority was "same ol same ol barely slow Tulsa growth" ignoring national demographic trends and changes, vrs "faster growth for the future of Tulsa by implementing the Comprehensive Plan".

I do like that Bartlett appears to have cut some extraneous fat here and there from city government, he may have been the right guy for the right time in that aspect, and there are still a lot of streamlining/efficiency/upgrading things that need to be done at City Hall.   But, you can't ignore the future and ignore making changes, again thinking about the Comprehensive Plan.

How each candidate will prioritize the implementation of the new Comprehensive Plan (which indeed has the potential to make a lot of people quite angry, but needs to be done) will be a major factor in deciding my vote.  Bartlett is out, it's between Kathy and Christiansen.

[Teatownclown]

I'm no fan of BC and neither are the others at Riverside.

Dewey is a nice guy who was born on third base and thinks he hit a homer. Unfortunately, he lied about employment under his direction (like he's the reason for the increase?). And he continues to fail at attempting to clean up our air and water.

KT is a known entity and yes, a familiar name. Actually, we should feel fortunate she is willing to go it again. Tulsa needs a ballsie Mayor.

[DTowner]

KT is a known entity and yes, a familiar name. Actually, we should feel fortunate she is willing to go it again. Tulsa needs a ballsie Mayor.

So ballsie she dropped out of the race last time when she saw the recession coming.

Christianasen does not have a clue, Bartlett does not have a vision and Taylor is more worried about her image and dreams of higher office.  I don't see any good choices.

[Teatownclown]

What did KT do wrong? Higher office? we should be so lucky....She is hands above every state politician when it comes to smarts and ability to get government to work for the taxpayer.

[Conan71]

So ballsie she dropped out of the race last time when she saw the recession coming.

Christianasen does not have a clue, Bartlett does not have a vision and Taylor is more worried about her image and dreams of higher office.  I don't see any good choices.

Actually if you read exactly why she was not running again vis-a-vis the economy, the challenges had started and she felt Tulsa would be better off if she didn't have to be distracted by a campaign at the time.  At least that's her stated reason.  I honestly didn't fault her for not having much energy at the time for another term.  She accomplished the most and was appreciated the least.  If everyone appreciates the current look and vibe of the Brady District and near areas, I strongly suspect it would not look like it does now and we'd be still awaiting many of the improvements which are now done, like the Matthews Warehouse project or Guthrie Green.

I was no KT fan when she came into office and remained that way for a year or so.  It dawned on me that she really had vision.  Sure, cronies of hers benefitted by her being mayor, but who hasn't?  She's got Kaiser's ear and some people call her his puppet.  If her being in office helped get more of KFF's money spread around within the IDL, I fail to see how that is a negative. 

I'm not calling you out specifically, I'm simply encouraging people to give an honest appraisal of the individuals running for office and I think Taylor is grossly mis-characterized as a "tax and spend librul" or that she ran from some sort of challenge.  Anyone who has actually had the opportunity to work around her knows she doesn't shy away from a good challenge. 

I like Bill Christiansen. I've been a constituent of his and customer at his aviation business.  I have nothing bad to say about previous business dealings I've personally had with him nor with anything when he was a councilor.  I think he could be a good mayor. 

Bartlet (sic) is a clueless bumpkin.  He needs to go back to tending his oil business.

I'd vote for either Taylor or Christiansen.  I'd have to give the edge to KT as I know what her leadership style is and I think it's what Tulsa needs to keep from becoming complacent.

[carltonplace]

I think that is a good assesment Conan. +1

[DTowner]

Actually if you read exactly why she was not running again vis-a-vis the economy, the challenges had started and she felt Tulsa would be better off if she didn't have to be distracted by a campaign at the time.  At least that's her stated reason.  I honestly didn't fault her for not having much energy at the time for another term.  She accomplished the most and was appreciated the least.  If everyone appreciates the current look and vibe of the Brady District and near areas, I strongly suspect it would not look like it does now and we'd be still awaiting many of the improvements which are now done, like the Matthews Warehouse project or Guthrie Green.

I was no KT fan when she came into office and remained that way for a year or so.  It dawned on me that she really had vision.  Sure, cronies of hers benefitted by her being mayor, but who hasn't?  She's got Kaiser's ear and some people call her his puppet.  If her being in office helped get more of KFF's money spread around within the IDL, I fail to see how that is a negative. 

I'm not calling you out specifically, I'm simply encouraging people to give an honest appraisal of the individuals running for office and I think Taylor is grossly mis-characterized as a "tax and spend librul" or that she ran from some sort of challenge.  Anyone who has actually had the opportunity to work around her knows she doesn't shy away from a good challenge. 

Connan – While I thought Taylor did a pretty good job as Mayor, I think you give her more credit than she deserve for what's currently happening in the Brady and downtown.  The foundations for many of today's achievements in that area were laid before she became mayor and/or have more to do with the efforts of others.  The ballpark has helped the area, but the development around it has generally been disappointingly sparse to date.

My biggest problem with Taylor is that, as you noted, it was clear when she backed out of running for a second term that the city (state and county) were headed for some tough economic times.  If she is as skilled as she says and you believe, then that is exactly the time the city needed her the most.  Claiming she was worn out just doesn't cut it.  She quit when the going got tough and now wants the job back when things appear to be on the upswing.  That is not the kind of leadership I can believe in.

I don't find any of the three candidates appealing, but I think she will win.

[RecycleMichael]

The ballpark has helped the area, but the development around it has generally been disappointingly sparse to date.

I disagree. I think the ballpark has helped quite a bit. I also don't blame the ballpark just because the properties directly next to it haven't sold and changed. I attend many games and see lots of people walking to the ball park after hanging out in both the Brady Arts District and the Blue Dome.

I have young kids and they never said they wanted to live near the fairgrounds even though we went to many a game there. Now, my kids really want to live and work downtown. The ballpark made everything within five blocks cool to them.

Baseball is magic and moving the ballpark spurred everything in my opinion.

[cynical]

To be specific, what I remember about Taylor's announcement in June, 2009, that she was not seeking reelection was that she was pushing the ball park financing package through the city council. Some councilors were balking because they were reluctant to give her a big win in the run-up to the campaign. She defused that concern by publicly announcing that she would not seek reelection. The package passed that very evening. In her announcement she mentioned that the challenges the city was facing would require her full attention and she would need to be making decisions that could be unpopular and didn't feel that her spending time on the campaign trail was in Tulsa's best interest. But make no mistake about it, pulling off the ballpark deal was at the center of her decision.

The claim that she ducked the recession sounds like one of Freddie Davis's spiels.

Connan – While I thought Taylor did a pretty good job as Mayor, I think you give her more credit than she deserve for what's currently happening in the Brady and downtown.  The foundations for many of today's achievements in that area were laid before she became mayor and/or have more to do with the efforts of others.  The ballpark has helped the area, but the development around it has generally been disappointingly sparse to date.

My biggest problem with Taylor is that, as you noted, it was clear when she backed out of running for a second term that the city (state and county) were headed for some tough economic times.  If she is as skilled as she says and you believe, then that is exactly the time the city needed her the most.  Claiming she was worn out just doesn't cut it.  She quit when the going got tough and now wants the job back when things appear to be on the upswing.  That is not the kind of leadership I can believe in.

I don't find any of the three candidates appealing, but I think she will win.

[swake]

To be specific, what I remember about Taylor's announcement in June, 2009, that she was not seeking reelection was that she was pushing the ball park financing package through the city council. Some councilors were balking because they were reluctant to give her a big win in the run-up to the campaign. She defused that concern by publicly announcing that she would not seek reelection. The package passed that very evening. In her announcement she mentioned that the challenges the city was facing would require her full attention and she would need to be making decisions that could be unpopular and didn't feel that her spending time on the campaign trail was in Tulsa's best interest. But make no mistake about it, pulling off the ballpark deal was at the center of her decision.

The claim that she ducked the recession sounds like one of Freddie Davis's spiels.

This is what I recall as well. I met her a couple of times. She's very sharp and I think she was a great mayor. And Dewey is a terrible mayor, he has to go.


Christiansen might be a good mayor as well, he was usually a lonely sane voice on the city council there for awhile when the council overall was just a looney bin. But, she's got the experience and already did a good job. She's probably just the safer choice. Either one would likely be able to do well with the much more reasonable council that Tulsa seems to have right now.

[Vashta Nerada]

The FOP will bankroll their yes-man Christianson in order to defeat Bartlett, so Bartlett's only smart move at this point would be to unload
the dead albatross around his neck and replace the police chief(s).

Taylor? She bailed on the people of Tulsa quicker than an Egyptian hot-air balloon pilot.

[guido911]

Taylor? She bailed on the people of Tulsa quicker than an Egyptian hot-air balloon pilot.

You are not calling her a "quitter" are ya?

[Conan71]

The FOP will bankroll their yes-man Christianson in order to defeat Bartlett, so Bartlett's only smart move at this point would be to unload
the dead albatross around his neck and replace the police chief(s).

Taylor? She bailed on the people of Tulsa quicker than an Egyptian hot-air balloon pilot.

Take a look at what she's been doing the last four years.  "Bailed" is hardly a term I'd use. 

If people truly understood how much of a force she has been in getting Lobeck/Taylor Foundation funds distributed throughout the city as well as being able to influence others to do the same, I think they would have a far better appreciation for her.  Our quality of life has benefitted through the elected and un-elected efforts of Kathy Taylor.

I'm pretty certain The Lobeck/Taylor family could afford to live and move their philanthropy to other locales where it would apparently be more appreciated.