Norris Streetman



Q&A

  1. A recent presentation by a city councilor showed Tulsa's overall police and fire budget has grown more than three times above the rate of inflation over the last 40 years without adding manpower in at least the last decade. It has been described as "unsustainable growth" with the city's current level of revenue. How would you propose to address this situation?
  2. I don't see anything wrong with the facts, nor the recommendations except for the cost. The position Tulsa is in compared to other cities in the study is pretty good for dollars spent. More money can always improve a position, but the real question is what is an appropriate level? Do we need to be as good as or better than other cities? Under current budget constraints, I'd put these recommendations on hold and concentrate on expanding the tax base, encourage revenue growth. When that is accomplished, this study may be revisited. Care must be taken in making traditional police positions civilian simply because they may be less expensive. Some positions could well be staffed with civilians, but each must be studied carefully as privatization is not the answer to all financial problems. Police morale and other issues are also relevant.
  3. Over the last several years, controversy between the City Council and mayor's administration has triggered discussions about changing from the current strong mayor- council form of government to a city manager-council form of government and about having Tulsa's elected offices be non-partisan. Would you support either of these ideas? Why or why not?
  4. Controversy between the City Council--legislative branch, and the Mayor's administration--the executive branch, has largely been because certain past City Councilors have not properly understood their legislative roles and have tried to usurp executive functions. Some of these councilors have perceived their roles as both legislative and executive. The public has already corrected these problems by not sending back the most egregious offenders, and I suspect they will continue to do so if these circumstances should arise again. I support the current City Charter. City Manager-Council government forms are better suited to smaller communities, not major cities. An elected Executive accountable to the public is preferable in my view, and party affiliation is an indication to the public of governing philosophy.
  5. Improving mass transit (i.e. additional bus service, rail lines, etc.) has been a major topic of discussion through the city's ongoing PlaniTulsa comprehensive planning process. Do you believe Tulsa's public transportation system needs improvement? Please explain.
  6. Mass transit is an idea that always comes up during election times. However, we must still work within our budgetary constraints to improve this.

    Heretofore, in my view, mass transit other than the nominal bus routes we have now, has been a non-starter because Tulsa has not had a geographical "destination" sufficient to justify rail or other mass transit forms. With the development of the downtown area as an entertainment, cultural, and sports destination, coupled with new hotels, restaurants, and retail businesses, along with a resurgence in office employment, rail transit from other surrounding communities and other parts of Tulsa may well be justified to further develop throughout Tulsa. Ultimately, we must make mass transit more user friendly and economical in order for the citizens to use it.
  7. What would be your top three priorities if you are elected?
  8. 1. Crime - Until the average citizen realizes crime is on their doorstep, in neighborhoods, schools and workplace, nothing will be done. Last year, Neal Sweeney, a good man, was assassinated. I told myself that this must stop. I want to introduce a program where the neighborhood associations use foreclosed vacant houses as neighborhood way stations, where safety is promoted in high crime areas with a partnership with law enforcement. It worked in Bagdad, Iraq and Boston, Massachusetts.

    2. Streets - This issue will always be with us. Last year, I hit two potholes and ruined both the wheels and the tires to a tune of $1,500. With the street program known as "Fix the Streets", which includes third penny sales tax, and the County "Four to Fix", a total of $451 million is allocated to this problem, even though an independent citizen panel recommended an expenditure of $1.6 Billion. The street repairs are in the process as we speak, from all sides of town-north, south, east and west. It is the belief of the citizens that this should be as cost effective as possible. Yes, in order for a contractor to get the job he has to be the lowest bidder. However, I would like to look a little closer at how the contractor does his job. If we could put together a citizen panel to look at eliminating waste, and give the opportunity for the contractor to implement these cost-cutting ideas, and they do indeed save money, this could be carried over to the next job.

    3. Jobs - The economy, as we have all heard and know, is down. However, whenever there is one person's loss, there is another person's gain. I want to shout it from the house tops, "Tulsa is the place to live." The people are great and the cost of living is as low as anywhere. I would like to put a citizen task force together and give opportunities to out-of-state companies who want to cut costs to move to Tulsa. For example, there are plenty of states to go after, like California, Nevada, Michigan and Florida. Let's be promoting Tulsa as the place to live and do business.