Mindy Wood covers City Hall news and notable court cases for The Transcript. on the 2021 Human Rights Campaign Municipal Equality Index a measure of how supportive municipal governments are of their 2SLGBTQ+ residents as a notable accomplishment of her term. Clark missed the mayoralforum due to a work conflict, but later said in an interviewshe supports fully fundingthe police department. Kevin Stitt, Kishsaid she wants tobring a new perspective to the Norman City Council and draw on her experience managing her own practice to create a more inviting business environment in Norman. Eventually, her supporters in city government and the community at-large led her to reconsider. #okwx #texomawx. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism Breea serves as the Mayor of Norman, the 3rd largest city in the state of Oklahoma. Bill Hickman, the current Norman Ward 4 council member, works as an attorney and small-business owner. Mayor Clark's police budget-cutting seemed to many as a ME-TOO reaction to the groundswell of DEFUND movements following the death of George Floyd. Full Name: Breea Clark. While on council, Thompson supported the city's first public safety sales tax that funded additional police officers. for Clark and several Norman city council members. In addition to her role with the City of Norman, she serves as the Director of the JCPenney Leadership Center in the Michael F. Price College of Business at the University of Oklahoma. Ruggiers is a former Norman Public Schools teacher, and he said his election shows that the community wanted to give teachers a voice. Clark highlighted Normans perfect score on the 2021 Human Rights Campaign Municipal Equality Index a measure of how supportive municipal governments are of their 2SLGBTQ+ residents as a notable accomplishment of her term. Reach her atmwood@normantranscript.com or 405-416-4420. Ill really start digging into the budget, Ruggiers said. Affordable housing doesn't just affect the homeless, it affects people who live paycheck-to-paycheck, Clark said. I am not at all in favor of it, Dunn said. Heikkila,70, is retired after serving 26 years in the U.S. Navy and working for the city for 17 years, ending his career as a safety manager who ensuredmunicipal departments hadsafe workplaces. Evan Dunn, a community activist and former teacher, attempted to set himself apart from his opponents by discussing moral problems in Norman. Asked if she still has concerns about election integrity or if she has faith in the 2020 presidential election results, Kish said polling shows people across the country have concerns about election integrity. 80 talking about this. She also previously served as interim Pre-Law Club Advisor and was a member of the 2018-2019 OU Leadership Council class. Breea Clark is the 60th Mayor for the City of Norman. Voting rights and elections: How new state laws could affect you. Were not your typical city that just has an urban feel to it if you look at our map, it goes way past Lake Thunderbird, Clark said. I felt like it would be a disservice to my community and my legacy of service and all that weve accomplished over the last three years to walk away. I dont think people know a single barrel of oil contains 25,000 hours of human muscle power, Dunn said. Performance & security by Cloudflare. He said its the key to bringing our community back together., Im proud that my message has been both positive and optimistic, he said. In that race, 13,068 total votes were cast. Thevote theOklahoma Supreme Court later said violated the state's Open Meeting Actlargely led to the formation of grassroots group Unite Norman and misleading allegations that the council voted to "defund the police. Kishhas litigation pending against several people she says made false statements about her that led her to endure death threats andlose clients and business income. I look forward to April 5.. Weve never addressed this, ever. First off, the defunding of the police department, they managed to truly deflate our wonderful police department that used to be a premier agency in Oklahoma, Heikkila said last month. Part of that solution should involve more collaboration between rural and urban Normanites, she added. Mayor Breea Clark pursues second term, prioritizes homelessness, stormwater, encouraging voter participation, The Wichita, Kansas natives Norman ties began in 2005, when she moved to Oklahoma to attend the OU College of Law after receiving a bachelors degree in political science at Wichita State University. On campus, she has served on the Universitys Legal Panel, Speakers Bureau, and the Committee on Discrimination and Harassment. They each spoke about what they believe makes them the best choice for Norman. In addition he holds many technical certifications in Disaster Relief Operations, Occupational Safety, and Construction. She called local business closures at the start of the pandemic"devastating" forher practice. The more we can collaborate, the more we can stretch our dollars to do the most good.. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.. Clear skies. Low near 40F. He is also a graduate of the U.S. Navy Senior Enlisted Academy, Class 122-Gold. Each petition failed to gather enough signatures, Members of a Facebook group opposing Normans COVID response, Clark said she was continually targeted and harassed. Affiliations:Member of the Oklahoma Bar Association; Oklahoma Bar Foundation; member of the Family Law Section; member of the OBA Law Schools Committee; member of the OBA Legislative Monitoring Committee. Norman Mayor Breea Clark wasnt always certain she would pursue a second term after a tumultuous three years in office. Her mayoral tenure became defined largely by the coronavirus pandemic and nationwide policing debate. Clark said the rise in partisan politics that has saturated notable Norman City Council issues for the past year has no place in local decision making, and that shes glad to see candidates run with a focus on minimizing those influences in municipal government. Fighting for the mayoral position of Norman, Oklahoma, Heikkila got around 53% of the total votes which was around 1600 more than what Clark got. So I'm glad that people are watching and participating.. She said her experience in guiding Norman through the COVID pandemic and directing funding from federal sources, like the CARES Act and federal grants, will also be vital as Norman looks to emerge from the pandemic. Dunn is the only candidate who does not support the stormwater utility bond. Its very clear that everyone wants to keep moving in a positive direction.. 2. Clark broadcast her concession speech to her official Facebook page. ", What happened in June 2020 was hours of listening to residents saying that the current system is not working for them, and if your policing is not working for everybody in your community, then you have to change, Clark said. [We need] to combat the ease with which alcoholism, casino addictions can all cause the moral corrosion and collective decay of our society and the common culture, he said. Clark graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Wichita State University in 2005 and then received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Oklahoma College of Law in 2008. Norman voters have chosen Larry Heikkila to be the city's next mayor, preliminary election reports indicated Tuesday. When asked to provide evidence of her claim,Stephenson-Leuck, who is retired, cited statistics that homelessness and gambling cango hand-in-hand, but she had no Norman-specific data to show the casino is contributing to homelessness in the city. Norman resident and lifelong Republican John Trice, 68, said he envisionsthe political winds shifting this election cycle. UPDATED: Heikkila edges out Clark in mayoral race. He moved to Norman in 1978 and was a longtime City of Norman employee who now sits on several Cleveland County citizen boards. On Tuesday, the total ballooned to more than 24,000. Specifically, Clark said she aims to produce long-term facilities solutions for Normans homeless population, pass a stormwater utility for Norman and bolster local infrastructure. Mayor Breea Clark will face Larry Heikkila in a runoff after neither candidate captured a majority of the vote Tuesday, preliminary election results indicated. Hickmans campaign has received$48,670 in contributions, Clark has received$18,781, and Dunn did not raise enough to meet the minimum reporting requirement. Reach her atmwood@normantranscript.com or 405-416-4420. is a wildly inappropriate breach of municipal governments non-partisan nature, Clark said. Members of a Facebook group opposing Normans COVID response sent Clark death threats online in May 2020, and Clark said she was continually targeted and harassed online throughout the pandemic. KOCO 5 asked the five about COVID-19 mitigation measures, working with a divided City Council, police funding, federal funds for cities and how to address Norman's growing homeless population. Numerous polls show most Republicans agree with Trump's falseclaim that the election was stolen. from the University of Oklahoma College of Law in 2008, she started working for the Universitys Office of the Provost on the main campus and was instrumental in the creation of the Office of Academic Integrity Programs. Once she returned from the nation's capital, Kish said she was harassed, stalked and doxxed by "leftists" that called her practice numerous times a day for weeks on end, leading her to hire off-duty Norman police officers as security. If passed, the city would be able to allocate more resources to make infrastructure improvements to stormwater conveyance and collection systems. Mayoral and city council elections will take place Tuesday, Feb. 8. "Because of Mayor Clark, I bet youre going to see the pendulum swinging conservative.". Clark was elected mayor in a three-way contest in 2019 after serving on the city council for three years. Stephenson-Leuck, 67, said she jumpedinto the mayoralrace due to thepolice budget cut in 2020. She said her experience in guiding Norman through the COVID pandemic and directing funding from federal sources, like the CARES Act and federal grants, will also be vital as Norman looks to emerge from the pandemic. One of her top issues is addressinghomelessness. Clark received 36.46% of the vote to Heikkilas 32.01%. Some have argued my being a staff member at the university is a detriment, Clark said. 210.65.88.143 Long-term maintenance and staffing of such facilities could pose an obstacle for the city, Clark said. As mayor, Dunn said his first priority would be for people to understand the need to conserve oil and fossil fuels in society. Eventually, her supporters in city government and the community at-large led her to reconsider. government. The conservative candidatehas been criticized for being in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021, for a rally led by former President Donald Trump, although Kish says she was nowhere near the U.S. Capitol when a pro-Trump mob stormed the building. She addressed her relationship with the university in an interview with NonDoc. On campus, she has served on the Universitys Legal Panel, Speakers Bureau, and the Committee on Discrimination and Harassment. Heikkila and Leuck did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday. Saying Heikkila's years of public servicemake him the "stable, experienced leader Norman needs right now," the Norman Fraternal Order of Police endorsed the conservative candidate who has vowed to "rebuild" the city's police and fire departments. She is also a proud graduate of the 2018-19 OU Leadership Council class. Breea serves as the Mayor of Norman, the 3rd largest city in the state of Oklahoma. I find it sad that local government has the lowest voter turnout, because the decisions we make on the second and fourth Tuesday at the city council chambers impact Normanites lives way faster and more directly than any decisions you're going to see at the state and federal level. The second attempt had more support than the first, so Im hopeful we can get it across the finish line. Clark also thanked her volunteers, her campaign workers and her family for their support. He retired as the Command Master Chief, 9th Naval Construction Regiment. After that meeting, the police department has since restructured and created a community service and outreach bureau, more specific to building neighborhoods, building relationships, and better targeting at crimes.. Every election cycle, someone will point out I started out in Norman as a registered Republican, Clark said. Department: JCPenney Leadership Program He won over incumbent Mayor Breea Clark. In addition to her role with the City of Norman, she serves as the Director of the JCPenney Leadership Center in the Michael F. Price College of Business at the University of Oklahoma. Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox. Runoff: Mayor Breea Clark to face Larry Heikkila in April. He began his quest to become Normans mayor amid a crowded field of five candidates that took part in Februarys general election. 32. "We had stumbled into this real combative scenario here in town," he said. She also touted the city's hiring of a sustainability officer and a chief diversity and equity officer, saying the latter and the city council passingpro-LGBTQ policies and protectionscontributed to Norman getting a perfect score in the Human Rights Campaign's municipal equity index. Keep it Clean. The City of Norman has made this mistake before. Email Us Now; 800-516-3964 . Midway Bob, Dr. Kish, Ms. Leuck, and again, mayor-elect Heikkila, I wish you the very best.. [1] On April 5, 2022, Larry Heikkila won the runoff election and became mayor of Norman, Oklahoma. (They asked), Why would you want the progress youve made to be undone, Clark said. Larry Heikkila was elected as the 61st mayor of Norman in 2022. "Everyone who ran entered the mayoral race had one central goal, and that was to improve the City of Norman. He serves at the Cleveland County Detention Center and at Mission Norman as a Chaplain endorsed by the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Address: 307 W. Brooks Clark and Hickman feel the same about many Norman issues and both have city council member experience. Share Background Report Overview of Breea Diane Clark Lives in: Norman, Oklahoma Phone: View phone number Age: 39 Breea Clark's Voter Registration He won over incumbent Mayor Breea Clark. I also dont like the university elite hijacking Normans government. If no candidate receives 50 percent of the vote, the runoff election will take place Tuesday, April 5. Breea Clark, the current Norman Ward 6 council member, works as the director of the J.C. Penney Leadership Program at the University of Oklahoma's Michael F. Price College of Business. Clark said she stands by her handling of the pandemic that earned her recognition from the Oklahoma State Medical Association. Cockfighting fight turns back time at Oklahoma Capitol, The awkward family affair of Gov. I think theres a lack of trust with what they did with our money.. While the group also endorsed candidates in Wards 2, 4 and 6, none were elected. Heikkila was endorsed by Cleveland County Commissioners Darry Stacy and Harold Haralson, the local fraternal order of police and the firefighters union, among others. "If you have a city that has good public safety, there isn't a homeless issue, the crime isn't going up, your city is going to prosper," she said. tomorrow by helping launch the careers of media professionals. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a27ac526b8852e3 I assume its the DNC agenda, but we dont like that here. Sworn In: 07/05/22 You have permission to edit this article. Potential affordable housing solutions under consideration now include single-room occupancy spaces near the intersection of Robinson Street and Berry Road. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, won the electiondespitewidely debunked claims of election fraud spread by Trump and his supporters. As one of the common refrains among candidates, police funding is likely to be top of mind when Norman residents head to the polls Feb. 8. Post Office Box 370 Norman, OK 73070. person will not be tolerated. She currently serves as Vice President of the Mayors Council of the Oklahoma Municipal League and on the Board of Directors for both the Oklahoma Municipal League and the Association of Central Oklahoma Governments. Its hard to focus on my professional career when the City of Norman requires so much attention. Before receiving her J.D. Breea Clark is originally from Wichita, Kansas, where she graduated with her B.A. In-person absentee voting takes place Thursday and Friday, Feb. 3-4. To achieve this transformation, the management of it must be pragmatic, productive and visionary, and must redefine Norman into a city of excellence. I tend to be right about in the middle. City officials have also consulted with Griffin Memorial Hospital which sits on state-owned land under the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services about constructing multifamily affordable housing. She earned a Juris Doctorate in 2008, and became director of OUs JCPenney Leadership Program in 2018. Mayor Heikkila is a pro-business, pro-growth, avid supporter of Normans Police and Fire Departments. racist or sexually-oriented language. After that, I am not at all opposed to these bond sales as an alternative or adjunct approach. I love Norman, Hickman said. Mayor | City of Norman, OK Information on City Council and Committee Meetings City of Norman, OK Building an Inclusive Community Mayor How Do I? The two candidates made their cases to voters in a final push to get out the vote. He retired from the City of Norman in April, 2014. This is amazing. Her portrayal as a raging liberal by campaign opponents is wildly untrue and inaccurate, Clark said, given her voting record and past political experience. Previously, he served the citizens of Norman with seventeen years of service as an employee of the City of Norman. For accessibility assistance please contact the ADA Technician at 405-366-5424. I give this to God.. The Norman Transcript recently published analysis of Norman campaign finance reports through Jan. 28. Snell had served on the school board for more than two decades. Her mayoral tenure became defined largely by the coronavirus pandemic and nationwide policing debate. in Political Science from Wichita State University in 2005. . We make a whopping $100 a month to do this, so its certainly not for the money. A graduate of the University of Oklahoma's law school anddirector of OU'sJ.C. Penney Leadership Center, Clark decided to run for reelection because she believes she's the best person to continue guiding Norman through the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Dunn acknowledged that selling war bonds might not generate the revenue of stormwater utility bonds, but called it a first step in finding some financing. "I will be the champion Norman needs to make a positive impact for everyone in our community.". If youre able, please Heikkila is a 26-year Navy veteran. OK firm says some groups get special treatment in managed care bids. She teaches several undergraduate courses, includingIntroduction to LeadershipandLeadership in International Settings. Clark and Hickman were united on the removal of the University North Park TIF. At a mayoral forum held by the Norman chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police last month, the candidatesvowed toprioritizepublic safety funding after the Norman City Council, including Clark, in 2020 approved a cut to the proposed police budget an issue that has embroiled the city ever since. Breea Diane Clark (age 39) is listed at 718 E Johnson St Norman, Ok 73071 and is affiliated with the Democratic Party. He is a member of the Norman Chamber of Commerce. She saidRiverwind Casino,owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation, is the reason homelessness is on the rise in Norman. Asked his priority now that he is elected, Ruggiers said he wants to ensure families trust the district. Grant won 54.41 percent of the vote, compared to 45.59 for Hobson. Earlier in the pandemic, some Norman residents criticized Clark for requiring some businesses to close and imposing capacity limits on businesses and public gatherings to reduce the spread of COVID-19. With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Heikkila received more than 53% of votes, with . City of Norman, 201 W Gray St,Norman, OK 73069, Information on City Council and Committee Meetings. Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. "We were the first todeclare a state of emergency," she said. I am not in favor of the school bond, Im not in favor of any of the transportation bonds.
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