The office of Mayor may be decided on June 11th with Tulsa’s first non-partisan Mayoral election, so there isn’t much time to review the candidates and make your decision.

PlaniTulsa–launched during my first term — was a much-needed update of our comprehensive land-use plan. It was a great example of a citizen-led process that engaged close to 10,000 citizens to outline the blueprint for Tulsa’s future. I’m disappointed to see that the progress has slowed, but I’m looking forward to the chance to get it moving again – to begin to “Build It Tulsa.”
Some possible next steps:

1) Assess the progress thus far with the community
2) Recruit citizen volunteers who will get it moving again
3) Determine what resources and support they need to get the ball moving again.
4) Communicate online and hold regular public meetings to discuss issues moving forward and develop timelines for next steps. We must work with citizens in an open and transparent way to build a city that keeps Tulsa growing.

2. The local paper has written of many scandals involving the police department over the last ten years. The cost per officer has increased from $65k per officer to $94k in the last nine years and the annual overtime budget is already spent with three months to go. Tell us your plan to clean up the department’s reputation and keep costs in control?

We will not, under any circumstances, tolerate any misconduct, just as we didn’t in the Public Works department when I was mayor. But it’s important to remember that for every article on a scandal, there are hundreds of officers who are out doing the right things to keep our city safe every day.

In terms of addressing the costs of police officers, there are many things we should do to ensure that we are spending taxpayers’ money responsibly and efficiently. A first step is ensuring we have the right level of staffing, to get ahead of the attrition curve and reduce overtime costs. We must provide law enforcement with the technologies they need to fight crime effectively and efficiently – targeting resources where they are most needed. Other cost-effective technology improvements could include upgrading antiquated record management systems – allowing police to optimize record sharing and access the information they need, and automating paperwork for faster response times.

3. The city of Tulsa has 135 parks including several well-maintained signature parks, yet the city has been tearing down buildings in other areas of town because of funding losses. Is the answer prioritization or adding funding to the park budget? Why?

It is a combination of both. Parks need to be a priority because research has shown that well-maintained parks have far reaching effects on reducing crime, improving educational results in children and developing the local economy. For example, data shows that when a community center is closed, nearby crime goes up; when one is opened, crime goes down. Numerous studies have shown that people that live around parks are less violent and there are fewer property crimes like graffiti and littering. Secondly, the fact that people congregate in parks and in community centers stimulates local, private investment in businesses that create jobs in the area, not to mention increasing physical and mental health. Business owners tell me that good parks and recreation opportunities are key in their ability to recruit employees to move to Tulsa. We also need to do a better job with the money we have – looking for ways to collaborate and find innovative partnerships. For example, when Gilcrease was in trouble, we didn’t say, “Close it,” and we didn’t say, “Throw more money at it.” We found a partner in TU that not only helped stabilize the museum, but helped it grow and become even better.

4. Tulsa’s downtown has been in the news lately in a contest lamenting the expansive amount of surface parking and lack of dense parking structures. TulsaNow members feel very strongly about building preservation and reuse. Are you supportive of a temporary ban on downtown demolition and do you have any plans to discourage more surface parking or encourage more structured parking?

Protecting Tulsa’s historic buildings and addressing Tulsa’s “parking crater” problem is important. Remember, until PlaniTulsa, the guide for planning in Tulsa was 30 years old! One effective way to address that is to continue to make better use of space so that downtown land is too valuable to warrant large, surface parking lots. That will encourage multi-use buildings where retail, parking and residential are all housed in the same building – a much more attractive, efficient use of downtown space. We need to stop teardowns, unless they pose a safety risk, until we have a plan for parking that supports downtown growth.

5. The public meetings to discuss capital bond and sales tax have been attended by TulsaNow members to ask questions about mass transit and bicycling opportunities. TulsaNow also hosted a forum on light rail. State your priorities and direction on transit, bike lanes and your plan for implementation.

Tulsa cannot become a world class city without improvements in transit and bike/walkability. A couple of priorities – we need to push forward on the Peoria BRT bus corridor and evaluate to consider implementation in other areas. We need to look for creative ways to finance – public-private partnerships, working with businesses that have specific transit needs for their workforce, or partnering with institutions like schools or colleges. We need to require sidewalks throughout the city as part of rehab or new construction projects. We also need to ensure we are incorporating transit needs in our public works planning, so that when we build or rehabilitate roads, we do it in a way that can accommodate future transit needs. I convened the first group to look at how Tulsa could meet the requirements to become a bike-friendly city – and we need to incorporate input from groups like the Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee, which outlined bike-friendly goals and objectives to the Council last December.

6. The Tulsa we all love needs jobs to succeed. Economic development is quickly touted by all candidates for office, but results depend on many factors including good schools and cooperation with state, federal, and chamber officials. Who should be responsible for economic development, what have you done, and what bold steps can we consider to create jobs?

As a former business owner and Oklahoma State Secretary of Commerce and Tourism, I know firsthand that government must support the private sector, not hinder it. That is why as mayor, I will continue to make sure that government listens to our business leaders and provides the investments that will help them grow and prosper and minimizes unnecessary red tape that slows their growth. The government’s most important role in economic development is to ensure we have a safe, livable city, with good infrastructure and a good education system. We should make smart investments of public dollars that spur greater private sector investment (like ONEOK Field, which spurred tremendous development downtown). We also need to ensure we have a well-educated workforce – through strengthening our school systems, and through programs like Tulsa Achieves, started during my first term, which has helped 10,000 Tulsans receive a college education – 80 percent of whom stay in Tulsa to live and work. To grow the jobs of tomorrow that have strong Tulsa roots, the Mayor needs to support the 90% plus businesses in Tulsa that have 100 or fewer employees.

7. The city of Tulsa is one of the largest employers in Tulsa. As the leader of this employer, do you support the extension of benefits for same-sex partners?

This is one area where all three major candidates expressed agreement at the FOP forum. I do believe that people who are in supportive, long-term, committed domestic partnerships should have the same right to extend their benefits to their families as other city employees do. Strong Tulsa companies like the Williams Companies implemented this policy in 2008.

8. In approximately 500 words, why are you the best candidate for mayor?

I am the best candidate for mayor for two reasons – I have a track record of proven leadership and I have a vision for the City that will help us make Tulsa the kind of City where our kids and grandkids will want to live. I want to serve as your mayor so we can again work together to keep Tulsans safe, rebuild our city’s streets, and provide all kids with access to a quality education. Tulsa’s jobs and the ability of our citizens to thrive depend on these priorities. I have spent my public service, and business career fighting for investments for the people of this city and I will continue to make those investments – in our safety, streets, and schools– a priority.

In terms of proven leadership, in my first term as mayor, I brought together many different dedicated Tulsans to overcome the challenges the city was facing and turned them into opportunities. When the BOK Center was just an over-budget hole in the ground, I brought together a wide range of people from the County Commissioners to the designer of the arena to the engineers to find ways to complete the project – keeping true to the iconic design envisioned by Mayor Bill LaFortune without requiring any additional taxes from Tulsans. When the Drillers were going to move out of town, we brought together business leaders and private donors to build ONEOK Field, keeping the Drillers in town and spurring development downtown. When we introduced a 12-year streets package and the citizens told us they wanted something different, we worked with the council to develop a package that was the largest investment into our streets ever that passed with overwhelming support. And when three young teens were killed within my first couple months in office, we brought together members from the community, the District Attorney, the police and experts from around the nation to hold an anti-gang summit to develop a comprehensive approach to dealing with Tulsa’s gang problem. And finally, when the recession hit the country and sales taxes started to decline, I made the difficult choice to forego another term as mayor to focus on keep Tulsa’s budget balanced without cutting essential services.

If I’m elected to another term as Mayor, I will continue to build coalitions of dedicated citizens and partnerships with business leaders and community groups to move this City forward together. I will continue our proven methods of bringing people together, working together to understand challenges, and thinking innovatively to come up with solutions.

Mayor Bartlett is solely responsible for the delay.

2. The local paper has written of many scandals involving the police department over the last ten years. The cost per officer has increased from $65k per officer to $94k in the last nine years and the annual overtime budget is already spent with three months to go. Tell us your plan to clean up the department’s reputation and keep costs in control?

I will work closely with TPD to monitor activities of all the staff. Although there have been issues in the past I believe the overall reputation is good. I will have an end-based budgeting approach to all city department budgets.

3. The city of Tulsa has 135 parks including several well-maintained signature parks, yet the city has been tearing down buildings in other areas of town because of funding losses. Is the answer prioritization or adding funding to the park budget? Why?

I believe it is both more funding and prioritization. Park recreational centers are important to maintain the integrity of neighborhoods and give young people a place to spend positive time doing positive activities.

4. Tulsa’s downtown has been in the news lately in a contest lamenting the expansive amount of surface parking and lack of dense parking structures. TulsaNow members feel very strongly about building preservation and reuse. Are you supportive of a temporary ban on downtown demolition and do you have any plans to discourage more surface parking or encourage more structured parking?

We must preserve buildings in downtown- many of them are great assets to the history of Tulsa. I am in support of a ban on demolition. We must focus on many structured parking in strategic locations of downtown. Demolition of historical buildings must stop.

5. The public meetings to discuss capital bond and sales tax have been attended by TulsaNow members to ask questions about mass transit and bicycling opportunities. TulsaNow also hosted a forum on light rail. State your priorities and direction on transit, bike lanes and your plan for implementation.

Bike lanes should be installed when possible as we improve and rehabilitate our streets. Mass transit must be improved city-wide.

6. The Tulsa we all love needs jobs to succeed. Economic development is quickly touted by all candidates for office, but results depend on many factors including good schools and cooperation with state, federal, and chamber officials. Who should be responsible for economic development, what have you done, and what bold steps can we consider to create jobs?

It should be a joint effort of the Tulsa Regional Chamber and the Mayor’s office. While on the city council, I implemented a retail development specialist position within the city. I championed “shoptulsa.org”. We must have out of state marketing. Offices in states that are business unfriendly to sell the benefits of relocating business to Tulsa.

7. The city of Tulsa is one of the largest employers in Tulsa. As the leader of this employer, do you support the extension of benefits for same-sex partners?

Bill Christiansen does not discriminate against anyone and is for inclusivity. Bill practices marriage from the biblical meaning and supports the legal meaning of marriage as it is.

8. In approximately 500 words, why are you the best candidate for mayor?

While on the city council for 10 years I learned it is very important to build relationships with others; build bridges and not walls. My 10 years on the council and 41 years in small business are my ability to relate to the average citizen.

News on 6 went along on the tour and reported on the progress: http://www.newson6.com/story/21949504/take-a-sneak-peak-at-new-downtown-hotel-in-old-tulsa-city-hall-building

One of our members also shared a few photos on our forum:

The new XYZ bar/patio, built in what was previously a hole in the plaza.

5th street check in desk. They have to build another one for temporary use on the ground floor.

5th street "before" picture. The road will take out the penguin fountain then split on both sides of the staircase.

One of the rooms. Half the rooms are double beds. Run $129-$169 door rate.

Banquet area for about 350 people

View out of a south-side room ]]> http://tulsanow.org/index.php/2013/05/tour-of-aloft-hotel/feed/ 0 http://tulsanow.org/index.php/2013/04/a-lofty-tour-coming-your-way/ http://tulsanow.org/index.php/2013/04/a-lofty-tour-coming-your-way/#comments Wed, 03 Apr 2013 14:12:30 +0000 admin http://tulsanow.org/?p=314 Continue reading →]]> TulsaNow will be offering tours of the recently-remodeled former City Hall building on April 11th, starting at 5pm. You will get to see the ins-and-outs of the new Downtown Aloft Hotel before it opens. These tours are open to the public, but reservations are required.

Reservations are on a first come, first served basis. Click here to make your reservation.

Citizens from Tulsa, lead by the TulsaWebDevs will spend the day coding their way to a better city and a better online Civic infrastructure. Read more about their previous civic-minded projects on the TulsaWebDevs site.

Words fail at the moment. We’re shocked that forward-thinking, positive progress and love of Tulsa can so easily be tred upon by a small handful of individuals, who vote against their own staff, and indeed against their own interests. This expansion would have effected only a handful of commercial properties prime for development. The pros and cons have been weighed for years and it can only be a fear of change holding back progress at this point.

We applaud the work of the city planning department and can only say: Keep on keepin’ on.

Bus rapid transit (BRT) is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. The goal of these systems is to approach the service quality of rail transit while still enjoying the cost savings and flexibility of bus transit.

More details:

http://www.fastforwardplan.org/tabid/65/ctl/ViewItem/mid/423/ItemId/112/Default.aspx?SkinSrc=%2Fwebsite%2FPortals%2F0%2FSkins%2FFastForward%2FSubPage

This proposal would bring choice riders and help start a sorely-needed overhaul to our current transit system.

Take your thoughts to the forum