New annual contracts for three important community entities—Sapulpa Main Street, the Sapulpa Area Chamber of Commerce, and Pride in Sapulpa (a committee of the Chamber)—were up for recommendation to the City Council for renewal at Monday evening’s Community and Economic Development committee meeting at City Hall.
All three agreements come up for renewal every summer at this time. Part of this discussion centered around having them renew in March instead, which would give the CED committee and City Council ample time to make any needed changes to the contracts before budgeting for the next fiscal year, which begins on July 1st.
Part of this process involves the directors of the organizations making presentations to the Council on how they spent their budget the prior year, which events they hosted, and how those events benefited the community.
City Attorney David Widdoes explained that Main Street’s purview is downtown revitalization, and that its contract with the City lasts for one year, can be terminated at any time with a 75-day notice, and allocates $30K a year to the group, or $2,500 a month.
Vice-Mayor Carla Gunn said she has spoken with SMS Director Cindy Lawrence about some issues that have arisen due to a couple of its planned events for the summer, like Rock the Route and Food Truck Fridays. Gunn said Lawrence said that her biggest impediment to successfully hosting every event is finances. She doesn’t have the same donors in a post-COVID world, and it takes money to include amenities like live music and portable bathroom facilities.
Another issue is whether downtown property and business owners cooperate with the events by allowing the public to use their restrooms and parking spaces or allowing SMS to install temporary portable bathrooms in certain locations.
“Here’s the thing,” said Gunn, “if I come downtown, there needs to be a designated spot for restrooms… If I go into a shop, and they tell me I can’t go there, that will discourage me.”
Gunn concluded by saying, “I think it would be a good thing for citizens to see Rock the Route or something downtown happening to get people in the flavor of ‘Here are things to come.’ We’re missing the mark on that.”
Ultimately, the Committee voted to recommend approval of renewing Sapulpa Main Street’s contract to the full City Council at its next regular meeting.
The Pride in Sapulpa committee of the Chamber of Commerce is another essential organization for the community. The City historically reimburses the committee up to $20K a year for the work they do on code enforcement, abatement, demolitions, mowing, and other beautification projects.
The CED committee also voted to recommend approval of renewing the Pride in Sapulpa contract to the City Council.
The contract for the Sapulpa Area Chamber of Commerce will be revisited after its representatives give a presentation over how they used its funds last year to the City Council.
Alleyways were the main point of discussion regarding the Downtown Master Plan. City Manager Joan Riley reported that the City is in the midst of securing some general quotes for a section of the alley development between Park and Water Streets, from Lee to Dewey.
“We have one [quote] that is way high and one that is way low, in comparison,” Riley said. “We are waiting on a third one to determine whether we need to go out for a formal bid. We just [need] an idea [of cost] so we have a starting place.”
Councilor Hugo Naifeh asked about the scope of work for the project, and Riley answered that they are using the Downtown Master Plan created by consultants Ochsner Hare & Hare as a guideline.
She stated that the largest cost of the project will be utility changes, like pipeline, and that most people involved are in agreement that a “level concrete surface stamped with brick or some kind of pattern” would be the best choice for a surface, due to looks and safety concerns.
There was a lengthy discussion on sales tax incentive policy ideas to stimulate economic development led by Economic Development Director Mark Lawson, who emphasized that this was just a discussion and not an opportunity to decide on a policy.
Lawson said that he is researching other nearby Towns’ and Cities’ economic development incentives, and that he and other City Staff are visiting other communities who have revitalized their downtown areas and other areas to learn more about their successes and recommendations.
Naifeh said, “This is very important…we need to do something.” Gunn agreed, saying, “I’m glad to see you all are getting out and seeing what other cities have been successful with. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel—there’s a blueprint out there.” Lawson concurred, following up with the assurance that “We will tailor it to make it work for Sapulpa.”
Lawson told Sapulpa Times, “I am working with the City Council to understand their visions for the incentive dollars the voters approved in the [2020 GO] Bond. I want to pursue deals that align with that vision. “
There were no major updates on either the Booker T. Washington Recreation Center or Town West, although there are projects and developments underway for both, respectively, including the Gilcrease Expansion that will have a massive impact on Town West. Lawson stated, “We have a lot of opportunity to grow there.”
