The council voted unanimously to approve the incentives. GE announced last year that it planned to build a new global research center northeast of downtown that would create 133 jobs with an average salary of $129,800. The council approved an incentive of $1 million to GE and another $750,000 for site clearance and public improvements. […]
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Take Shelter Oklahoma files lawsuit against attorney general
The lawsuit made its way to the state Supreme Court, which ruled last week that Pruitt’s changes to the petition were valid. However, the court also gave Take Shelter Oklahoma another 90 days to collect signatures. “We do believe the ballot language used by the attorney general is not fair. We think it’s inaccurate, and […]
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Booze clues
Sipping on low-point (3.2 percent) beers while strolling around the city is legit. But festivals have special permits, and you can’t bring your own beer within the zone in which these events are held, although some will offer drinks to buy. As usual, any place (including restaurants and indoor performance venues) selling beverages won’t let […]
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Residents asked to register storm shelters
Registering a storm shelter helps emergency workers find them if a storm damages a home. “The number of storm shelter installations has skyrocketed in the past year, so we know there are thousands of new shelters that need to be registered,” Action Center manager Beth Crounse said.
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TIF love
While the city’s use of sales tax revenue through MAPS has gained the most attention over the past decade, the city has also turned to tax increment financing (TIF) as another way to leverage tax dollars into economic development. By creating a TIF district, the city provides public incentives to developers with the increase in […]
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Islamic advocacy group celebrates SQ755 defeat
As the Oklahoma chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) held its annual banquet Saturday, guests celebrated a year of advocacy that was highlighted by the defeat of State Question 755, a amendment to the state constitution approved by voters four years ago. “It was a pure political ploy and it was unsuccessful,” said […]
Posted inMusic
Horse Thief — Little Dust
In advance of their upcoming album, Fear in Bliss, Oklahoma City folk-rockers Horse Thief debuted a new single this week on popular music blog Stereogum. The song, “Little Dust,” is a breezier affair than “Devil,” the album’s first single. It features a mid-tempo rhythm section and twangy guitar swells layered beneath singer Cameron Neal’s nasally croon, and […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Love Triangle?
From tragedy comes art, so Lyric Theatre presents the new musical Triangle at the Plaza Theatre, inspired by the disastrous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire. The show’s creators — Curtis Moore (music), Thomas Mizer (lyrics) and Joshua Scher (book with Moore and Mizer) — also link the story tenuously to the World Trade Center attack of […]
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Council offers tax incentives for two facilities
The Oklahoma City Council voted Tuesday to offer tax incentives to General Electric and Baker Hughes for new facilities expected to create hundreds of high-paying jobs. Baker Hughes will receive $850,000 and General Electric will receive $1 million, assuming each company meets job creation expectations. The council voted unanimously to approve the incentives, but Ward […]
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Metro briefs
Sales tax collections dip Oklahoma City’s combined sales tax collections were 5 percent below target for the year in March. “The thing that has had the biggest impact [in declining sales tax] is income levels are down a bit in the metro area,” said Doug Dowler, the city’s budget director. A response with major spending […]