The Norman City Council approved housing developments along East Boyd Street, an extension of the Kappa Alpha Theta house and honored Judge Michael Tupper and members of Red Dirt Collective during its meeting Tuesday.
8:48 p.m.
The meeting has ended.
8:36 p.m.
Council is now hearing public comments.
8:28 p.m.
Ward 8 Councilmember Matthew Peacock is presenting to council as the lead architect for Doyle’s Electric's project to demolish a portion of their existing building on 122 W. Comanche St. that has severely deteriorated over the years, according to the meeting agenda.
“The reason why we're here tonight is this project is located in the Center City Planned Unit Development and we are asking for review variances from that (because) you can see on the site plan that we are demolishing the front half of the existing building and constructing a new two-story building on a vacant lot,” Peacock said.
Council voted to approve the proposal unanimously with Peacock abstaining.
8:06 p.m.
Council is hearing a proposal from Tom S. & Marye Kate Aldridge Charitable & Educational Trust to construct a duplex on 321 W. Comanche St.
The Aldridge Teasdale law firm partners and their families will also live in the duplex.
“The step in between that is missing in our community is the ability to have accessible housing for people that are not in homes alone,” attorney and one of the firm’s partner Jake Aldridge said.
According to the agenda, the site is to construct a two-family dwelling with each dwelling allowed a maximum of three bedrooms. The two-story structure will provide access to the first floor which will contain the living room, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom.
The second floor will hold two bedrooms and bathrooms. Each dwelling unit will have an attached garage on the rear of the structure with a driveway providing access to the alleyway.
Council approved the proposal 6-1 with Ward 5 Councilmember Michael Nash voting against and Ward 8 Councilmember Matthew Peacock abstaining.
8:03 p.m.
Council approved Ward 8 Councilmember Matthew Peacock to abstain from voting on two items he will present to council.
7:41 p.m.
Council is hearing a presentation regarding a proposal from the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority to develop 1.2 acres of land as an addition to its house and parking. The sorority’s house is located at the northeast corner of Parsons Street and Chautauqua Avenue.
According to a staff report, an attendee of the planning commission meeting on Oct. 26 said they didn’t think the expansions would be the best use of property in core Norman.
The presentation included an amended proposal, including a more efficient use for parking as well as an addition for a new outdoor, plaza space and garden. The addition to the house will allow more kitchen and study space.
Council approved the amendment to the proposal.
Council then unanimously approved the amended proposal.
7:36 p.m.
Ward 4 Councilmember Helen Grant moved to postpone two agenda items that would rezone one area located at 305 E. Boyd St. and another at 221 E. Boyd St. from Center City Form Based Code Districts, to Center City Planned Unit Developments.
Council approved to postpone discussion of these items until Feb. 27, 2024.
7:34 p.m.
Council approved all items from the consent docket, including implementing two-hour parking limits on Gray Street between Crawford Avenue and Peters Avenue and allocates over $15,000 to repair damaged police vehicles.
7:18 p.m.
Council is hearing items from the consent docket.
Council heard a presentation on one consent item which included an allocation of $175,000 for public art to be placed in the roundabout at James Garner Avenue and Flood Avenue.
According to the meeting agenda, on Oct. 13, 2015, Norman voters approved a 15-year, $150 million, Norman Forward Sales Tax initiative, which outlined various citywide projects to improve the quality of life for residents and visitors to Norman. The artwork for the roundabout is one of these initiatives.
Paul Bagley, an artist in Oklahoma City and former resident of Norman, was commissioned for the project. His proposal for the roundabout art is called Revolution.
"We're just creating a piece of wonderful artwork for people to question and interpret and hopefully have their minds blown when they drive into Norman and think 'Wow, this is awesome,'" Bagley said.
7:07 p.m.
During council member announcements, Ward 7 Councilmember Stephen Tyler Holman encouraged Norman residents to take a look at the recent announcement of Andrews Park master plan that was presented to council on Dec. 5.
6:56 p.m.
Council has moved on to council member announcements.
Ward 1 Councilmember Austin Ball said since the closure of Norman's central library, bus routes have changed. Ball said council is working on getting a temporary bus route established for the east side library.
There is already a bus route established for the west side library, Ball said.
6:47 p.m.
Council passed a resolution to give the 2023 City of Norman Human Rights group award to the Red Dirt Collective.
The Red Dirt Collective is a grassroots organization of volunteer Normanites that often holds mutual aid fairs among other community efforts. The collective runs outdoor food pantries across east and central Norman and founded a community garden, according to the nomination letter.
“I was so impressed as I am every year when I read nominations, but rarely have I seen an all volunteer program, do the many, many things that they are doing and work with so many other groups, to make things happen,” Jackie Farley, chair of the Norman Human Rights Commission, said.
6:39 p.m.
Council unanimously passed a resolution to give the 2023 City of Norman Human Rights award to Judge Michael Tupper.
“Each year we give out this award to deserving individuals and groups who have made such an impact that we feel deserving of being recognized,” Jackie Farley, chair of the Norman Human Rights Commission, said.
The Norman Human Rights Commission chose two winners for the 2023 Human Rights Award. Tupper was the first nomination, given his work presiding over the Cleveland County Adult Treatment Court.
According to the nomination letter, Tupper coordinates services with The Virtue Center, the Community Mental Health Center, defense attorneys, prosecutors and probation officers for people going through treatment court. Tupper himself takes court clients jogging in Andrew’s Park on Saturdays.
"It's the most rewarding work that I do, the most proactive work that I do. I hear a lot of different types of cases and regardless of what type of case I'm hearing, I try very much to humanize these cases (because) these are more than just case numbers, these are human beings who are before me because they're struggling in some manner,” Tupper said.
6:30 p.m.
The meeting has started.
