The Norman City Council appointed new members to the reapportionment ad hoc committee, conducted the first of two public hearings for its 2023 budget and granted Logie’s on the Corner a special use permit during Tuesday’s regular meeting.
In September 2021, a committee was formed charged with redrawing the city’s ward boundaries that determine council representation and voters’ precinct locations. The reappointment process happens every ten years in Norman, falling in line with the U.S. Census, but was delayed along with the 2020 census results due to COVID-19.
Following a comment made by one of the members of the 2021 reapportionment committee referring to Ward 5 Councilmember Rarchar Tortorello as “dangerous,” Ward 5 residents — who claimed that the committee was ignoring their concerns as a rural community and favoring urban areas — and Tortorello claimed the committee had practiced gerrymandering.
The previous committee was dissolved by the council following the controversy. The only member of the committee to remain the same is Christopher Tallbear, the member at large. The committee appointments were placed on the consent docket, which passed unanimously.
The council conducted the first of two public hearings — with the second one scheduled for May 24 — on the 2023 budget. According to Norman Budget Manager Kim Coffman, Norman’s budget consists of over $245 million. Public safety is the highest expenditure at 23 percent, followed by capital improvements as well as strategic support and criminal justice at 16 percent and 13 percent respectively.
The 2023 budget’s general fund is just over $90 million, with 28 percent of the fund being dedicated to the police, 23 percent to public works and 19 percent to the fire department.
Rebecca Bean, a volunteer at the City of Norman Animal Welfare and co-chair of the Animal Oversight committee, went before council to ask for financial support for the shelter, including staffing and improvements to their air conditioning system.
Bean said that the committee supports four requests on behalf of Animal Welfare for the 2023 budget, adding that about a week ago, the shelter found out that none of their requests had been moved forward into the budget.
She asked that the council amend the budget and add enough support for two more staff positions, saying the shelter was so short staffed to the point that they don’t have time to let dogs out of their kennels or help adopters.
“So far in 2022 on average, we’ve only had a total of eight hours of volunteers walking dogs per week. That translates down to two minutes and 20 seconds of outside kennel time per dog each each week, that’s ten minutes a month. None of us think that’s ok,” Bean said.
Mayor Breea Clark said that improvements to the volunteer program could also help the shelter, adding it was harder for her students to volunteer at the shelter than at a school due to the extensive background checks required.
Ward 1 Councilmember Brandi Studley asked why the shelter could not be pulled out of the Norman Police Department section of the budget into its own. City Manager Darrell Pyle said council could do that, and that conversation could happen at the next city council study session.
Ward 2 Councilmember Lauren Schueler said she moved forward the shelter’s two capital projects — improvements to HVAC and the purchase of an anesthesia machine — to City Director of Finance Anthony Francisco to add as amendments to the budget or possibly use surplus funds from this year.
The council will not vote on the budget until June, following the second hearing. If approved, the budget will go into effect on July 1.
Logie’s on the Corner, located on Campus Corner, was approved for a special use permit for a bar, lounge or tavern to continue operations under current circumstances. Logie’s has been in business for 17 years, and claimed that they should legally be considered grandfathered.
Grandfathering, in the legal sense, means to allow a pre-existing operation to continue legally whenever a change would cause it to be illegal.
In 2018, Oklahoma’s state liquor laws changed requiring 35 percent or more of monthly gross sales from establishments must be from food items in order to be considered a restaurant, not including low point beer, which was previously classified as food.
Joe Bendetti, the owner of Logie’s, asked council to allow him to continue to operate the same as he has been under this permit, with a few amendments that insured 21 plus signage and enforcement, hours of operation and full kitchen service for 8 hours a day passed unanimously.
Bendetti assured council that nothing about the way Logie’s operates now would change and the business would continue its same menu and service.
Ward 7 Councilmember Stephan Holman asked Bendetti to agree that should the permit not be granted, it would negatively impact Logie’s.
“I don’t know what the future is going to be (if this permit is denied),” Bendatti said. “It just seems that we have a legitimate reason to ask, and I probably should’ve asked for it a long time ago.”
Ward 2 Councilmember Lauren Scheuler asked to clarify what changes to the business would happen if this permit were granted. Bendetti said that only 21 plus individuals would be allowed into the bar at all hours, instead of just after sundown.
Mayor Breea Clark asked Norman Police Department Chief Kevin Foster if this would impact officers on Campus Corner. Foster said that while they received calls regarding Logie’s, he did not believe that Logie’s switching from a restaurant to a bar would drastically increase police efforts.
Ward 8 Councilmember Matthew Peacock asked if there was a statute of limitations on pulling Logie’s Special Use permit. City Attorney Kathryn Walker said that there was no statute, but if council wanted to, the measure would go to public hearing.
Several surrounding business owners — including Brent Murphy of Hideaway Pizza, Lois J Wheeler of the Los Donas Apartments and two property owners, Michael L Webb and Rainey Powell — filed letters of protest expressing concerns that granting this permit would lead to Campus Corner becoming a bar district.
Clark said she would’ve liked to see “an effort” to try and reach the 35 percent requirement before Logie’s filed for the permit, adding that she did not want to change the historic area forever and would not support the permit.
“I would’ve liked to see (Logie’s) try. I mean, the largest employee is across the street and we eat lunch there, it’s not hard. I eat lunch there multiple times a week,” Clark said.
In a vote of 8-1, with Clark voting against the measure, Logie’s was granted the special use permit.
During time reserved for council announcements, Studley addressed a proposed temporary location for the city’s warming shelter on the Griffin Memorial Hospital property. She said that due to Griffin selling some of their property and remodeling, the building the city intended to use for the shelter will be going up for sale soon.
“I just want to say that on Aug.31, would you feel safer knowing that 40 people are in a warming shelter, or would you feel safer with them trancing around our city at night, looking for places to stay in doorways, businesses, alleyways and things like that,” Studley said.
The city’s contract for its current warming shelter will end on Aug. 31.
Studley ended her time by advocating toward justice for Shed Euwins, the victim of an April 9 shooting near the intersection of Lindsey Street and Elm Avenue. On April 22, the District Attorney’s office announced they would not press charges against the shooter.
Hall said that to her, the boundaries of council authority in regards to personnel matters had been “blurred” recently, citing recent council comments.
“Consider this my request that the city attorney review the code of ethics, the consequence of violating that code and be prepared to review the code of ethics with city council with her recommendations on any changes that should be considered and also review the boundaries of council members becoming directly involved with personnel matters so it is clearly understood going forward,” Hall said.
