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. E-mail: breea@ou.edu. Prior to seeking elected office, she served on the Norman Tree Board, Library Board, and the Norman Forward Sales Tax Citizens Financial Oversight Board. Newcomer Alex Ruggiers defeated longtime incumbent Dan Snell in the race for Norman Public Schools Board of Education Office No. Thompson said he jumped into the mayoral race because he figured the only way to stop the political divisiveness inNorman was a change in leadership. The incumbent also thanked Thompson for running a clean race. ", 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. This is hard.. Largest Oklahoma United Methodist church may cut denominational ties. E-mail:breea@ou.edu 32. [2] General Results [ edit] Norman voters will cast ballots Tuesday, Feb. 12, to decide which of three candidates will become the next mayor of Norman. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles. However, there is no clear answer about her affiliation. I also dont like the university elite hijacking Normans government. Its a need for our city, Hickman said. I think we could have a ward-specific citizen commission, and experts in stormwater infrastructure and water quality combine again and make a proposal.. In-person absentee voting takes place Thursday and Friday, Feb. 3-4. [1] Recall organizers submitted enough signatures to put the recall election against Councilwoman Petrone on the ballot. 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. (Kyle Phillips / The Transcript). "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. The Norman Transcript recently published analysis of Norman campaign finance reports through Jan. 28. Municipal actions and municipal policies can change the way Oklahoma brands itself and how Oklahoma can go from being one of the least-desirable states to being a leader in shaping our foreign policy and shaping our domestic policy, Dunn said. The youngest female and first Millennial to hold this seat, she is invested in. Her challengers in the nonpartisan race are Nicole Kish, Larry Heikkila, A.E. During her tenure as mayor, the Norman City Council allocated CARES Act funding to local businesses and vaccine distribution. 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 . Larry Heikkila has defeated Breea Clark and clinched the position of Mayor in the recent election. Share with Us. Mayor Heikkila is a pro-business, pro-growth, avid supporter of Normans Police and Fire Departments. Just a Mayor Who Can't Say No to Renewable Energy | Sierra Club The city also needs to update its master plan for development that reflects how Norman intends to grow, he said. Breea Clark - University of Oklahoma Heikkila got 32 percent of the primary vote, and Clark received 36.5 percent. Norman voters have chosen Larry Heikkila to be the city's next mayor, preliminary election reports indicated Tuesday. Address: 307 W. Brooks Full Name: Breea Clark. Clark received 36.46% of the vote to Heikkilas 32.01%. She cited Norman's low unemployment rate and record sales tax revenue as signsthe city's economy is strong. It was an election both candidates fought on battleground issues facing Norman, from increasing police funding to boost staff levels to economic development and quality of life projects to retain families and attract tourism to the city. Be Nice. The Voter's Self Defense System - Vote Smart Mayor Breea Clark pursues second term, prioritizes homelessness The married mother of two boys has been praised and vilified for signing Norman's emergency stay-at-home order earlier than most cities and waiting later than other cities to ease restrictions. University of Oklahoma College of Law, J.D., 2008. To achieve this transformation, the management of it must be pragmatic, productive and visionary, and must redefine Norman into a city of excellence. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Norman Mayor Breea Clark looks up her election numbers during her watch party, Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022, at Blackbird Gastropub. . When it comes to my experience as the incumbent, this is the most unique situation our city has been in in a century, Clark said. I would like to be added to the WB's monthly newsletter, "A Family Matter". Mostly we just need to assure the public that they can trust Norman Public Schools. But I actually see it as an advantage. 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. (NonDoc) Support Journalism In the culmination of two years worth of debate over city leadership, Larry. Her campaign for a second term, she said, is focused less on restating commitments made in her first three years and more on goals she will pursue, if reelected. During her tenure as mayor, the Norman City Council allocated CARES Act funding, Norman remains the largest city in Oklahoma without a dedicated stormwater utility. government. The citys unique position as the only Oklahoma municipality required to vote on the creation of a public utility poses a challenge for city officials to create an easily understandable, equitable funding solution, Clark said. Prior to his election as mayor, he served as the Chairman of the Excise Board and Equalization Board, Vice-Chair of the Tax Roll Correction Board and as a Member of the Industrial Authority for Cleveland County. With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Heikkila received more than 53% of votes, with . When our city council made Norman the first city in Oklahoma to commit to 100 percent renewable electricity by 2035, the community was all for it. Breea Clark is Of Counsel at WhitbeckBennett. 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. Clark also praised NPDs efforts in interacting and building relationships with Normans unhoused residents, and said she hopes to pass additional funding to help the department staff its community outreach services. news. Keep it Clean. or anything. Ill really start digging into the budget, Ruggiers said. Mailing Address: P.O. 405-876-9216. perm_identityWho exactly is Clark? "These people messed with my livelihood, and that is cancel culture and that should never happen in the city of Norman," Kish said. She also supported the city council ordinance requiring masks in public. No education information on file. Together they owned a small glass business on Main Street for four years. . Larry Heikkila has defeated Breea Clark and clinched the position of Mayor in the recent election. 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. It was built, but we were not prepared for the staffing and maintenance costs. Funding the project has been. Be Truthful. Low near 40F. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a27ac526b8852e3 Performance & security by Cloudflare. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.. Clear skies. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. Before receiving her J.D. Stephenson-Leuck said she isnot accepting campaign contributions, and was relying on a series of public mayoral forums to promote her campaign. that is degrading to another person. Norman voters have chosen Larry Heikkila to be the city's next mayor, preliminary election reports indicated Tuesday. 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. It's time for the drama and the partisan politics to end, she said. Breea Clark (@clarkfornorman) / Twitter online throughout the pandemic. I will do everything I can in power to support mayor-elect Heikkila, she said to a crowd of supporters. Ultimately, local government issues, such as infrastructure, policing, zoning and economic development should not be partisan, Thompson said. In 2019, propositions for stormwater utility bond projects and a stormwater utility fee received 42.62 percent and 39.68 percent yes votes, respectively. Your IP: I think theres a lack of trust with what they did with our money.. Former Mayor Breea Clark Affordable housing doesn't just affect the homeless, it affects people who live paycheck-to-paycheck, Clark said. Breea Clark is the 60th Mayor for the City of Norman. 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. 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. 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. She saidRiverwind Casino,owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation, is the reason homelessness is on the rise in Norman. We believe The You have permission to edit this article. You have permission to edit this article. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. state. This is amazing. Grant, who works at Oscillator Press in Norman and serves on several municipal committees, ran on a platform of bridging the divide between Normans urban core and its outlying areas.