Norman City Council will consider repealing an ordinance related to the Rock Creek Entertainment District during its Tuesday meeting, according to a council member’s social media post.
In a Facebook post Friday evening, Ward 7 councilmember Kimberly Blodgett wrote that she, along with Ward 1 Councilmember David Gandesbery and Ward 5 Councilmember Brandon Nofire, “used the rule of 3 to get the ordinance repeal on the agenda.”
An ordinance repeal is a legislative action that removes a previously adopted law from a city’s code.
Blodgett wrote it was one of her “proudest days on city council.”
Blodgett confirmed in the comments of her post that the ordinance repeal was in relation to the Rock Creek Entertainment District.
“It was important to me to serve the over 500 emails I received to do this,” Blodgett wrote in response to a comment from Cynthia Rogers, an OU economics professor and member of Oklahomans for Responsible Economic Development, a Norman-based group opposing the establishment of the entertainment district.
In a comment on Blodgett’s post, Rogers wrote that the ordinance repeal would give Norman residents “the best chance” to send the entertainment district’s tax increment financing, or TIF, district to a public vote.
Tuesday’s meeting agenda had not been updated with the ordinance repeal at the time of this article’s publication.
OU Daily reached out to Blodgett, Gandesbery, Nofire and Mayor Stephen Tyler Holman for comment and more information on the ordinance repeal Friday night but did not immediately receive a response.
ORED's attorney Rob Norman wrote in an email to OU Daily Friday that the organization is "pleased" council will consider the repeal.
"We remain steadfast in our goal to put the ARENA TIF Project ... to a vote of the People of Norman," Norman wrote.
Friday evening, Gandesbery made a post on Facebook with accompanying images related to a horoscope reading which read “actions speak louder than words, and following through wholeheartedly will make a difference in the outcome.”
“My Pisces horoscope was dead on today. Glad to be able to lead by keeping promises to the voters,” Gandesbery wrote.
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In February, City Attorney Rick Knighton told council members he did not believe the city had the authority to bring a TIF ordinance for the entertainment district to a vote of the people.
Knighton said the city does not have the authority, as set out by a 1983 opinion from a former Oklahoma attorney general, to hold an election for the TIF ordinance.
Knighton said he would anticipate legal action if council sought to repeal the TIF ordinance, due to the economic development agreement already being approved by the Cleveland County Board of Commissioners' recreational and entertainment facilities authority.
In the event of a lawsuit, Knighton estimated the city’s minimum liability would be $230 million.
Paul Arcaroli, ORED member, told the Daily in a Saturday morning phone call that he knows some city staff and council members have concerns about the potential legal consequences, but that is all "smoke and mirrors."
"Unless there's actually some action taken and we can actually get some rulings on this, we're basically just conceding the game, and that game is a really bad deal for the city of Norman," Arcaroli said.
Arcaroli said, despite Blodgett, Gandesbery and Nofire's action to place the repeal on Tuesday's agenda, he fears others may aim to delay or table the action.
"There are a lot of people that feel passionate about it, and we're going to ask people to show up and hopefully persuade those teetering individuals who are trying to position for a delay to just vote on it, and I'm going to call on them to vote on it that night," Arcaroli said. "It is not appropriate to delay this. Is it appropriate to hear the words of people in this town wanting a quality life, which means a sound tax structure, sound project plans."
Background
Around 1 a.m. on Sept. 18, 2024, Norman City Council approved the University North Park entertainment district 5-4. During the meeting, over 70 residents voiced support and opposition to the district and its TIF model.
Days later, ORED filed a referendum petition with the city to turn the Rock Creek Entertainment District over to a public vote.
In February, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled the gist of ORED’s petition to turn the entertainment district to a public vote was insufficient.
Ward 4 Councilmember Helen Grant and Holman — who served as Ward 7 council member at the time — were among those who voted against the entertainment district. Former Ward 3 Councilmember Bree Montoya and former Ward 5 Councilmember Michael Nash also voted against the entertainment district.
Ward 2 Councilmember Matthew Peacock, Ward 6 Councilmember Joshua Hinkle and Ward 8 Councilmember Scott Dixon were among those who voted in favor. Former Ward 1 Councilmember Austin Ball and former Mayor Larry Heikkila also voted in favor.
Alongside Blodgett, Gandesbery and Nofire, Ward 3 Councilmember Robert Bruce has expressed support for a public vote on the entertainment district. In a February Facebook post, Bruce, who was appointed to the seat in October following Montoya’s resignation, wrote he would continue to provide opportunities for residents to raise their concerns as the project progressed.
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